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Preparing to return By AMBER FOSSEN Ashland Daily Tidings Ashland School District students line up for class registration this week as summer slips by and the academic year approaches. All students grades first through 12th will be returning Sept. 4 for the first full day of the 2003-04 school year. However, before lunches can be packed and buses caught, students had to take one day of summer vacation off to register for class. Meg Brown Olson directs Kira Archibald, 15, and her mother Sandra Archibald to the next step in the registration process for Ashland High School. Ashland Daily Tidings/ DENISE BARATTA Ashland High School Secretary Berna Roper, who has worked for the district for the last 24 years, said students do a pre-schedule in the spring outlining the courses they would prefer. School administrators spent the summer working on a master schedule to meet students' wants and education needs. High school class schedules include appropriate level classes that fulfill graduation requirements and student-selected electives. All 9th and 10th grade students must take seven classes and 11th and 12th graders must take at least five classes, according to school officials. "With those students that pre-scheduled and those that had problems with their schedule and talked to a counselor, I'm not hearing any grumbling," Roper said, noting that student registrations continue steadily. Community and parent volunteers in addition to district staff members have all pitched in to help students navigate through the registration process. For sophomore Hannah Spector, 14, the process hit a couple of snags but was otherwise smooth sailing. "My sister had to go and fix all of her classes and I got some of my classes fixed," Spector said adding she wanted an additional art class and her sibling needed to get into an English class to satisfy graduation requirements. "But it has been easy and it was no real problem." AHS counselors like Don Valentini could be seen strapped to their desks Wednesday, helping students map out their academic year. The assistance didn't go unnoticed, according to AHS sophomore Kira Archibald, 15. "The counselors have been really helpful," Archibald said. While some students knew they got what they wanted, others, like senior Jose Garcia-Flores, waited in anticipation. When asked if his schedule fit his needs and demands, Garcia-Flores said, "I hope so, I've got to go check out my schedule." New and returning AHS students will have the same schedule as last year's second semester. Students will report to class at: 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Red days Monday through Thursday; 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. White days Monday through Thursday; 8:45 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. Red Fridays; and 8:45 a.m. to 2:35 p.m. White Fridays. High School registration will continue until Friday. Elementary and middle school registration concluded Wednesday. LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -