Burlington HS virtual hall passes upset students, district responds

BURLINGTON, Wis. - A virtual hall pass system at Burlington High School was implemented at the beginning of this school year, and students are upset.

Students upset

What they're saying:

Even though this virtual pass system has only been in place for a few weeks now, students already want it either modified or removed entirely.

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"I do constantly ask kids like, ‘Hey, how do you feel about this?’ I’ve never gotten an ‘Oh, it’s okay’ or ‘Oh, I like it,’ it’s always ‘No, I think it’s really stupid, I don’t like it,’" said Bella Peterson, a senior and student government representative at Burlington High School.

Peterson said students have to request a pass on their laptops, then the teacher has to approve them. She said this disrupts student learning and the teacher’s lesson.

"We just feel like we’re kind of controlled and they have to know where we are at every second – they have to time how long we do a natural biological need," Peterson said.

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Peterson’s mom, Elizabeth, said parents she has talked to have also expressed concern about the system.

"I think we have trust in our kids that they can make choices throughout their school day to walk down the hall to the restroom, or the health room or another teacher’s classroom," Elizabeth Peterson said.

School district's response

The other side:

Burlington Area School District officials sent a statement, saying the system "provides a consistent process, gives staff more accurate and up-to-date information about student attendance, reduces classroom interruptions, and protects valuable instructional time."

The district's statement went on to say: "This is a small change that reflects a much larger commitment: keeping students safe, protecting learning, holding ourselves and our students accountable, and preparing students for success."

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The Burlington School District said it will continue to monitor how the system is working and make adjustments accordingly. 

The district did not answer FOX6's question about how much the service costs the district or how long their contract with the company behind the system is.

Portions of this article were formatted using A.I. FOX6’s Ben Hanson and an editor reviewed it for accuracy and tone prior to publishing.

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