At the start of the second semester, Bellevue West implemented a new pass system for students and teachers to follow during GPS. 

The change was brought about after a committee including teachers and West deans Sarah Schau and Jason Trummer was formed in order to address school-wide concerns with attendance issues during GPS. 

“Before it was kids would go wherever they wanted and ‘will you email my teacher that I was here’—that sort of thing and things were getting lost,” Schau said. 

Students who need to go to a different room other than their assigned GPS must now obtain a yellow pass from the teacher that they will need to visit. All students should report to their assigned room everyday before the late bell. 

A second bell will ring three minutes after the start of GPS, and at that time students with a completed pass that is signed by both their GPS teacher and the teacher they are going to see will be able to go to the classroom that they need to visit. 

According to a presentation created by the GPS committee, the “bright and noticeable” passes are intended to eliminate communication issues for students and teachers and to prevent problems such as “students roaming the halls.”

The passes should be used only to visit classrooms for reasons including make-up work and getting one-on-one help from a teacher. Passes will not be written to go to lockers, vending machines, or restrooms. 

“We hope that students are using GPS to maximize their time, to use the time they have with their teachers,” Schau said. “That’s ultimately the hope.”