With the end of the 2020-2021 school year approaching, talks about what the school schedule would look like when students return to school in the fall have begun to surface. Students and staff at Holyoke Public Schools have been worried about what day they will return in August as well as the start times for their academic days. The start times and start date have been released by Holyoke Public Schools recently. Inevitably, there are arguments for and against the new schedules and bell times. 

In the fall, students are scheduled to return on August 23 for their first day of class. This is the earliest that students have returned to school in years. Teachers, on the other hand, are scheduled to return on August 17. This can be seen as a negative factor especially knowing that the last day for students at Holyoke Public Schools is on June 22, 2021. Students and staff are fearing that their summer vacation will continue to get shorter and shorter over the years. On the other hand, going back to school at an earlier date can be beneficial for students as they lost so much time due to the pandemic. This might be able to help students who have fallen behind, to get back on track with their education. 

Along with the earlier start date, the start time for school has also been made earlier. Students will now start their days at 7:40 AM. The positive aspect of this is that students will be released from school at 2:25 which gives them time to do outdoor activities and have more time in general for themselves. This can cause problems, though, as parents depend on school hours ending at 3:00 pm or later to work around their schedules at their job and allow them to have time to get out of work and go pick up their kids or be home to get theirs kids from the bus. Releasing students at this time can lead to them not having a way to get home especially for students who do not qualify for transportation. This is most concerning for students in elementary school and middle schools. 

Evidently, there are pros and cons to the new schedule and bell times for the upcoming school year. Students will have more time in the classroom for instruction and also have more daylight time to enjoy after school. On the contrary, summer vacations seem to be getting shorter by the years and parents/guardians will be left with a challenge to face when it comes to picking up their kids from school. Of course, it is still early in the year and these schedules and start times are subject to change, but as of now these are the basis to work around.