Grandview Freshmen Banned From Leaving Campus During Lunch
GRANDVIEW -- Grandview High School is getting tough with students who ditch class after lunch.
It's not quite a mass exodus, but it sure does come close. Everyday hundreds of teens take their lunch off campus at Grandview High School. Most of those kids will come back after lunch, but some will not. When it comes to freshmen, administrators are done playing games.
"We want to be preventative in what we're doing to keep (freshmen) on track as they go through their first, vulnerable year in high school," says Principal Mike Closner.
Beginning next year, Grandview High School will ban freshmen from leaving class during lunch, joining the likes of Prosser, Wapato, and Selah. Administrators hope attendance rates will go up and students will do better in school. Action News uncovered evidence that it could work. As KIMA told you in December, West Valley High School's ditch rate dropped 99% when it closed campus to all students during lunch.
It brings up an interesting point: will a closed campus really make any difference in keeping kids from ditching school once they're sophomores? Administrators are waiting to see.
"I'm hoping it will set that example of them being here everyday after lunch," Closner tells KIMA.
For their part, administrators tell Action News the closed campus is also a safety issue, especially with kids darting into traffic and trying to get to school on time. The new rules take effect when school begins in the fall.
Grandview's principal says there are no plans to close campus to any other students at the high school.
He tells us freshmen generally have higher ditch rates than other students.
It's not quite a mass exodus, but it sure does come close. Everyday hundreds of teens take their lunch off campus at Grandview High School. Most of those kids will come back after lunch, but some will not. When it comes to freshmen, administrators are done playing games.
"We want to be preventative in what we're doing to keep (freshmen) on track as they go through their first, vulnerable year in high school," says Principal Mike Closner.
Beginning next year, Grandview High School will ban freshmen from leaving class during lunch, joining the likes of Prosser, Wapato, and Selah. Administrators hope attendance rates will go up and students will do better in school. Action News uncovered evidence that it could work. As KIMA told you in December, West Valley High School's ditch rate dropped 99% when it closed campus to all students during lunch.
It brings up an interesting point: will a closed campus really make any difference in keeping kids from ditching school once they're sophomores? Administrators are waiting to see.
"I'm hoping it will set that example of them being here everyday after lunch," Closner tells KIMA.
For their part, administrators tell Action News the closed campus is also a safety issue, especially with kids darting into traffic and trying to get to school on time. The new rules take effect when school begins in the fall.
Grandview's principal says there are no plans to close campus to any other students at the high school.
He tells us freshmen generally have higher ditch rates than other students.
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