The Palo Alto High School Site Council is considering replacing InClass and delaying renovations for the football stadium after its meeting on Monday.
Council members enthusiastically discussed replacing InClass with a more streamlined and user-friendly system. After the InClass crash in spring 2009, the district has become open to the possibility of using a system other than InClass for online grading.
“InClass is cumbersome,” Principal Jacqueline McEvoy said. “We want a system that is more user-friendly, more student-friendly and more teacher-friendly.”
Paly teacher Margo Wixsom agrees that after the system redesign that happened over the summer, InClass has become even more difficult to use.
“It’s very hard to find things that before were very easy [to find],” Wixsom said.
Sophomore Site Council representative Jared Swezey-Gleason is in favor of a system with a digital dropbox, a feature no longer available on InClass.
Most of the math department uses eclassinfo.com instead of InClass, according to math teacher Kathy Himmelberger.
According to English teacher Kevin Sharp, the teachers in the English department offered to pilot School Loop, an alternative to InClass, last year, but the district would not allow them to do so. According to McEvoy, the InClass crash has opened the door to that possibility.
Social studies teacher Kathie Laurence suggested that any replacement system have a mobile component, so it could be accessed via cell phone.
According to McEvoy, InClass does not have a master schedule feature, something which alternative software offers.
“This group [Site Council] has leverage,” McEvoy said. “We need to get information [about InClass] to the district sooner rather than later.”
The Site Council plans on looking into alternative systems that will suit Paly’s needs at future meetings.
Additionally, the Site Council voted unanimously to recommend delaying renovations to the football field in favor of taking a year to draft a comprehensive plan for the renovations.
Among the issues discussed were the sycamore trees near the football field.
“We should put something in there that matches the climate,” Wixsom said. Sycamore trees are not native to the Palo Alto area, but many members of the community are very attached to the trees, according to Wixsom.
Another issue with the plans for the stadium’s renovation is the oak trees inside the stadium. Tree branches sometimes fall on the track, which athletes then have to avoid, according to Swezey-Gleason. One possibility would be to remove the trees and eventually replace the sycamores with trees native to the area.
Instead of renovating the football stadium in steps, the Site Council recommends drafting a plan that will include the expansion of the student bleachers and visitor’s section, the placement of concessions and the bathrooms.
“We should get a plan done this year and get a look at what the price tag would be,” McEvoy said.
According to McEvoy, football head coach Earl Hansen prefers that the renovations are done well rather than quickly.
Site Council will next meet after school on Monday, Nov. 9, in the ERC.