For Tampa Prep students and teachers, fall semester exams came late this year. Due to the construction of the Building of Learning and Discovery (BOLD) at the beginning of the school year, first-semester exams for Science and Foreign Language classes were pushed back to Jan. 15-16.

“It didn’t even matter that I’d studied a lot that week…I still failed,” said Carter Bingham, a senior at Tampa Prep, after taking his Honors Physics 1 exam. Students had a week to prepare after returning from winter break. “It wasn’t the lack of information I had; it was a lack of repetition…I needed more time.”

Benjamin Blunt, a senior taking AP Physics 1, shared similar concerns. “I felt as though I had forgotten everything,” he said. “I felt disconnected from the material, especially because a lot of classes had already moved on.”

However, some faculty members saw the change differently.

“From a student perspective, I don’t feel as though they lacked time to review for exams,” said Dr. Helip-Wooley, a five-year biology teacher and Science Department Chair. “From my classes, I did not observe a difference in student performance.”

For many students, the timing of exams overshadowed their winter break.

“The entire winter break you had exams hanging over your head,” Bingham said. “You knew that once you went back, that week would be terrible…I was tired entering the second semester, which is not a good feeling.”

Faculty also recognized the challenges of the altered schedule.

“100%. I think both the faculty and the students would want the exams to fall before winter break,” said Helip-Wooley. “It was just a weird year, and I am really excited to get back to a normal schedule next year.”

Blunt suggested that the school could have adjusted the semester timeline.

“They should have either chosen to cut the first semester short and do it before break,” he said. Some students also expressed that final projects would have been preferable.

Despite their frustrations, students acknowledged the school’s efforts.

“They did a great job…doing the best they could for the situation,” Bingham said.

After navigating construction delays and two hurricanes, Tampa Prep remained open and fulfilled its promise of completing the BOLD building by winter break.