As most students are aware of by now, Joliet West Administration has decided to cancel the winter and spring assemblies until further notice. This decision was made last year. Most students believe this decision came from the number of after school fights that seemed to take place following the assemblies; however, Joliet West Principal, Dr. Teresa Gibson offers the idea that we need to, “Devote as much time as possible to teaching.”

Principal Gibson recognizes that the assemblies are for the accomplishments of our students; however, elaborates by saying, “We are allowed 172 days in our school year and our focus right now is making sure teaching time is being used effectively.” This claim can be backed up by the recent release of the school’s testing data. According to the Chicago Tribune, Joliet West once again did not meet federal education standards during the 2012-2013 school year. More importantly, the school’s average score on the ACT was an 18 out of a 36 point scale.

According to senior athlete Ryan Lee,” I don’t get why we don’t have Friday night football games, now we don’t have assemblies.” A lot of students feel the same way about this topic and believe blaming the change on curriculum is just an excuse.
This topic of eliminating Friday night games still raises a lot of controversy, but getting rid of assemblies have a lot of students upset and questioning why they continue to lose priveledges and the value of celebrating school spirit and student achievement.
Senior Justin Burkhart commented,” I always liked the assemblies, it`s something to look forward to instead of staying in the same routine.”
Senior Heather Barry adds, “It’s the students who suffer and lose out on being acknowledged for being a West athlete.”

Everyone can agree that assemblies are important to the culture of a typical high school; no one is disregarding that fact. However, students feel it’s not unrealistic to want the school to at least agree to allow one additional assembly in the spring to promote school spirit, recognize athletes, and reward students for their hard work.
Senior, Alexs Stobbe concludes, “It’s the students who come through when needed to win contests and show Tiger Pride; where is our reward and recognition because, one time a year isn’t enough.”