Bishop Seabury’s Day Off

Every December, Seabury students prepare to take what are technically midterm exams but are commonly referred to as finals. This series of exams lasts for three consecutive days before school lets out for Christmas. However, the day before finals begins every year is Stop Day, on which no classes are held but many teachers open their doors to students to come in for optional studying. This scheduling tradition dates back to the early days of the school, but was for a long time removed before it made a reappearance. Since then, the day off has become a permanent fixture at Seabury, unlike at many schools that hold finals immediately after a full day of classes.

“The reason why students like it is because it either gives them an extra day to review and prepare and to breathe or to take time to talk to teachers about the work,” says faculty member and headmaster Don Schawang. “For faculty, I think they really appreciate time outside of classes to unpack some things for students who might need to do some review sessions, but also for them to do some grading and have a chance to breathe as well. I think it makes everyone a little more relaxed, a little more confident going into finals week.” For these reasons, Schawang and the rest of Seabury’s administration have elected to give students a day off before every finals week in recent years.

Likewise, the student body of Seabury is generally in favor of holding a Stop Day. Senior Malcolm Maude, for instance, states that “I think it’s useful for some people. I don’t see any reason to get rid of it, so why not? I mean, maybe it delays our break by one day, but I only have one final anyway, so I’m kind of apathetic.” While Maude may not be a very impassioned supporter of the custom, he does echo the sentiment of the Seabury community that having a Stop Day is a useful thing.