Act 80 days are a blessing in the eyes of students. November 16, students were not required to come to school due to an Act 80 day. Rather than a regular day filled with classes, teachers were available for conferences with parents beginning at 12 p.m. and ending at 8 p.m. The school used an Act 80 day for the convenience of parents with busy schedules.

“I liked it a lot. I preferred having scheduled appointments because I had time to prepare for my meetings. I was able to have all of a student’s work ready to show that student’s parent. I would love to have another day like that one,” Ms. Lloren Reichert, Spanish teacher, said.

These days that students have off are great for everyone. Students are able to get so much more work done when they have a long weekend. They have a larger slot of time where they can balance all of their work evenly and even have some free time to be with friends or just relax. With more time off comes more work for some classes, but these extra days off really help students with handling the work they need to complete.

The students also have time to catch up on sleep and their social lives, which are both very important to the success of students. Without sleep, how would someone be able to concentrate or even have the motivation to go to school? Students need to maintain a balanced social life so they can be happy and ready to finish school.

“I thought having parent-teacher conferences on an Act 80 day was a really good idea. I got a lot of homework done and had some extra time to just chill out. Our school should continue to have Act 80 days like this one,” freshman Hannah Marmas said.

For parents, the Act 80 day held for parent-teacher conferences really benefitted their busy schedules. Many parents are busy multitasking with jobs and everything at home. The multiple time slots that the administration offered allowed parents to find the best time to speak with their child’s teachers.

On any Act 80 day, teachers can get an immense amount of work completed. They can catch up on grading the papers that keep stacking up or listen to knowledgeable sessions. For this specific Act 80 day, the teachers had the opportunity to meet with many more parents than they usually would since there was more time for interaction.

“I liked how we did things this year since I knew who was coming in to speak with me. I was able to have things prepared rather than trying to scramble for the things I show parents,” Mr. William Rhoads, math teacher, said.

It would be a horrible thought if someone opposed having parent-teacher conferences on an Act 80 day. All members of the teaching staff, students and families can benefit greatly from a day like this. It provides opportunities for efficient working and important communication that is needed for a student to succeed. Overall, these days are superb.

PAHS should not only have Act 80 days for parent-teacher conferences, but just to give students a break. All students go through so much stress throughout the school year, and breaks really help a student improve. Having an Act 80 day to catch up is so beneficial for all students, and we need more.