With Hayes switching back to full-time schooling, it has helped many students retain the knowledge they’re being taught while also affecting their lives outside of school like extracurriculars and work.
Coming back to school full-time has limited the hours that students are available to work. On top of that, they have to handle stress caused by juggling school and work.
“Now that we’re back in school, I work a lot less hours and I need more time for school sports, being at school, and homework,” junior Alex Coughenour said. “Now that I don’t have the structured time online schooling gave me, I feel stressed trying to keep up with my schedule.”
Coughenour explained that during the hybrid method, he worked during the days where he wasn’t at school. During the days that he was at school, he worked mainly on homework. Now that he doesn’t have that structured time he said that he is experiencing more stress trying to balance work and homework.
Senior Meaghan Buckler said last year she was working around 30 hours a week, while now she has been averaging around 18 hours a week.
“I try to manage between work and school, and most of the time I can get it done at school, but other times I don’t get it done till really late and barely get any sleep,” Buckler said.
Students like freshman Xander Hicks, who has his own lawn mowing business, has had increased responsibility when it comes to time management.
“Making my own schedule, organizing, and getting everything done for my own business makes it really hard to try and manage all my time,” Hicks said.

Since Hicks is self-employed, he has to balance his time at school, time to do homework and time to mow lawns.
“It’s a lot different for me because this is my first year of high school, so I thought that it would be easy to find time for everything,” Hicks said. “Most days I just feel overwhelmed and stressed trying to schedule out my days.”
There are many students at Hayes who work to help out family, save for college and just to have money to spend. Many people don’t realize how hard it is for students to structure their time so they have time for extracurricular activities, school, and homework.
“It was a big switch [going back full-time] for me because last year I was working 10 a.m.-9 p.m., but now because of school and labor laws, I am working 3-6 p.m.,” sophomore Brandon Smith said. He said that last year he was working over 20-30 hours a week, while now he barely gets 15.
Senior Abby Oller, who has been working at Donatos for five months now, said that going from the hybrid schedule to full-time was difficult for her.
“My stress levels have changed a lot because there is a lot more work-wise,” Oller said.
Although many students like the full-time method better than the hybrid method, it was a huge switch for students with jobs. They have had to re-teach themselves how to manage their time and try to accommodate everything.
“One thing I would say is for anyone who has a job or is trying to get a job, try to do your best and make time for school because that’s what is going to be the best for you in the long run,” Oller said.