Twenty-eighteen is a year of change, but maybe the biggest change of all in the Prep community is the Integrated Physics and Chemistry to Biology freshmen class change. Last year, students at Prep were informed about the difference in the freshmen science class. While most sophomores, juniors, and seniors took IPC, the class of 2022 is taking Honors Biology or Biology.

When asked her opinion on the change, Ella Anderson ’21 said, “It’s a positive change, they connect to each other which allows for more chances to take more challenging classes.”

The skills and concepts from IPC will be moved and integrated into other classes. “By starting freshmen in Biology/Honors Biology we are better meeting the needs of our current student population, who are increasingly well prepared to study science.” Ms. Murphy stated, explaining how the change will be beneficial to the students in the long run.

Students are required to take a year of Biology, Chemistry, and Physics. Ms. Vickrey, who is new to the Prep Science Department this year talked about how, “It’s a subject that’s very conceptual…it’s a topic that students have a lot of common ground.” Biology is a good basis for the fundamentals of science.

When Gabriel Maggiore ’20 was asked if the freshmen will enjoy Biology more that IPC, he responded, “…absolutely, more interesting material.”

With the new Physics requirement Prep become more similar with the other Jesuit high schools and their curriculum. Because most sophomores were placed into Biology or Honors Biology, the freshmen will have more experienced students in their classes. Emi Nakata ‘22, a new student at Prep said that “It does help, for Bio, that there are upperclassmen, people with more experience.”

Ms. Alokolaro was an IPC teacher last year and when she was asked about the change and how it will impact the freshmen she said, “making the move allows us to ensure that everyone graduates with a full physics course and helps us avoid redundancies from people who came in with that curriculum from their grade school.”

The decision was made earlier in the year last year to make the science class change. There are many opportunities that the freshmen can now have because of the class. Erik Austin ’21 said that, “I think it’s good, it pushes students to learn more in the four years.”