What students want

When I was in high school, we had a lot of freedom. My school was an open campus. Whenever we did not have class, we could go wherever we wanted. There were no bells or hall passes, and no fear of discipline. Teachers encouraged discussion, and debate among students in classes and hallways was always lively, even ferocious. Students could pursue their interests as much as they liked. They led the school's clubs and activities, of which there were dozens. If they didn't find one they liked, they started their own.

It was by no means a perfect place. But even then, I knew that it was different from many other high schools. Now that I'm a few years removed from the place, I've come to appreciate my alma mater's qualities. I've also wondered how to bring a little of the spirit of the place to the school where I spend most of my time now.

What made my school unusual, I think, was the degree to which student input was valued. So there are little things here and there for student input in our room. That little manila comment box, for example, or those whiteboards. We try to provide many choices for students in the room, and we are happy to explore student interests. Individual students also give us suggestions.

In November, we went one step further and had formal group discussions with students on what they liked about the program and how it can improve. And students had many ideas to offer, on subjects ranging from the atmosphere of the room (pillows and plants) to staffing (more of us to help more students) to programming (new workshops and clubs). While we give students plenty of leeway in choosing how they use our program, many of them see it as a place to learn and be productive in their work. On a lighter note, they also wanted things like food and parties.

While we will implement only some of these ideas, they were useful to hear. We're beginning to respond to some of them: for example, a number of students wanted more places to sit in the room. So we tracked down some furniture, courtesy of another organization's donations, and now we have more tables and chairs (including some fabric stackables, two leather armchairs, and a wooden chair upholstered in purple and pink). Students wanted more trips to attractions around the city, and those too are in the works. To be fair, there are some ideas that we will pass on (no MySpace and Playstation for us). We look to continue this conversation with students throughout the year. Check back later as things progress.