Coming back from Winter Break, students heard new bells, instead of the bell system that played music to remind you to get to class. What is the reason for the new bell schedule? Is the new bell schedule affecting Falls Church High School students’ ability to get to class on time?

I sat down with assistant principal Missy Brady to get the answers to a few questions about the new changes in the bell system at Falls Church High School.

Q. Why was the bell schedule changed? 

A. The bells were changed due to a new PA system being installed.

Q. Why don’t we have music to give us a hint that we need to get to class?

A. The new system does not work with the old system. (The old system played the music.)

Q. Can we ever get the music back?

A. Yes, once the whole school renovation project is complete.

Q. How does the bell schedule work because a lot of students are confused by the different bells and don’t understand it?

A. The 4 bells signal 2 minutes until class, the three bells signal 90 seconds until class, the two bells signal 30 seconds until class starts and the final bell is the class starting bell.

 Q. Based on your point of view, do you think the bell schedule has positively affected the school?

A. I loved the music and I miss it, but the new system is what we have until the whole building is renovated.

Jags’ Opinions on the New Bells:

“I still get to class at the same time because I usually just look at the time and see that I have to start getting to class.’’        -Breanna Hundemer (11)

“I like how it times kids getting to class with the different bells but I think the old bell worked just as well and it wasn’t as annoying and confusing.  I like the old one with the music. You can also theme the music for different history months and different weeks and days which I think is cool.” -Izzy Wanchick(12)

“I liked how the old one played the music and was just one bell instead of three. I don’t like that the new bell has multiple bells which make them confusing.”   -Jake Themely(9)

“ I liked the old bell  because it was better. It played some hot jams I used to vibe out on my way to class”    -Brian Cali(11)