The beginning of the school year is filled with new classes and confusion. For many, the stress of being enrolled in incorrect classes and dealing with the social anxieties of a new year can be overwhelming.

Many people have criticized the counseling office and their refusal to grant some students their wishes. Students expressed frustration about not receiving their class schedule until arriving to school first day.

Forecasting has historically started in February, but, this year, Lincoln was a full month behind all other PPS schools. This was due to the counselors not knowing what classes or how many teachers they needed. While they started in late March, it took the team of counselors till late May to finish, meeting with each student to review their forecasted classes. Counselor Marquita Guzman stresses the importance of forecasting in the spring, rather than waiting until fall.

“Students have full control of their schedules when they forecast,” said Guzman.

Spring forecasting each year give the school essential information on students and their interests. The classes that students forcast for directly decides what classes the school will offer the next year and how many teachers to hire.

That is why “we really want students to honor the classes they forecasted for,” said Guzman.

Many students say it can be hard to know what classes they want to take so many months in advance. Others mentioned that it was hard to fill out forecasting sheets, mentioning they need to be made simpler this year.

“I wasn’t able to get mine in on time because it was so confusing to turn in,” said Ian Hannah, sophomore.

According to the counselors, they were aware of the issues and have decided to test out an online version this year, along with hopefully starting earlier as well. With much of their work done on computers, using a online forecasting format should help to prevent mistakes and get more students the classes they want.

Many arrived to school the first morning wanting to meet with counselors about their schedules, however, they weren’t open to meet with anyone. The only means of contact was by filling out green request sheets. This process was tedious and confusing for many, wishing they could request in person instead.

“It was very frustrating to not being allowed to get a in person meeting with my counselor,” said Nate Stember, sophomore.

The requirements for getting a schedule change have been revised this year. Now, only students who cannot meet graduation requirements or are in the wrong level of class can make a change. This can be frustrating for students who just want to adjust their schedule to be more convenient.

“I couldn’t get a free seventh, so that was disappointing,” says Conor Nelson, senior.

As stressful as it may seem, the counseling office is doing the best they can. Students control the classes they get enrolled in, if they take forecasting seriously. If they don’t, students should be patient with the office, they are the ones that are in control of your future.