It’s elective season here at Morgan, and students have begun picking classes for the upcoming 2026 school year. During an advisory assembly on Thursday, February 13th, students were introduced to all elective classes and asked to explore the class options from February 19th through the 21st. After that, guidance counselors came into English classes to help Morgan students choose classes for their next school year. There, students were given time to review the “Program of Studies” on the Clinton Public School website and begin choosing courses. All electives and classes are indicated on a PDF, giving students and parents a glimpse of what each class is about.
Choosing classes can be nerve-racking, but the help of mentors, Morgan and Eliot staff, and a Morgan help panel held on February 27 gave students an outlook to narrow down the choices that best fit them as students.
To help those who aren’t at Morgan yet, the 8th graders were invited over to Morgan on February 27th, 2025 to get the inside scoop regarding what classes are offered here at Morgan. A small group of students from various grades, (sophomore) Hayden Darr, (sophomore) Gavin Clow, (sophomore) Mekai Howard, (junior) Anadaly Lopez, (junior) Jacquelyn Ciarleglio, and (junior) Karla Duque, spoke in a small panel talking to the incoming freshman about what classes they took and which were the most interesting to them freshman year. That day they provided advice on honor classes, class scheduling, and time management.
The student panel emphasized the many extracurricular activities that are offered at Morgan that welcome students from any grade. Additionally, all clubs and sports offered were displayed on a slideshow presented above the panel, and each Morgan mentor student gave a blurb about each to inform the incoming freshman about them.
Pawprint hit the hallways of Morgan for suggestions
Guidance counselor, Mrs. Zdunczyk, believes the best advice to give when an incoming freshman is picking their first batch of classes for high school is to always try to think out of the box. “You never know what will spark your interest or teach you that you can grow and change as a learner and a human,” said Zyduncyk.
Freshman Peyton Vece, who just chose her second year of classes recently, reflected on her experience last year. “At Eliot, there wasn’t much of a choice on the classes we got to choose, so as I picked the classes for my freshman year of high school, it was different to have all different selections to choose from,” said Vece.
Vece enjoyed picking classes she enjoyed, rather than what was required, which she thought was nice. Since she selected all honors besides geometry. “It took a little bit to adjust to the workload as it differentiated from Eliot,” said Vece. Vece pushed herself to stay on top of everything more as she grew throughout this year, and she believes with new responsibilities she has developed new habits.
Popular Electives Amongst Morgan
An elective that has been popular and intriguing to students in the past has been a tie between the graphic design pathway electives and art electives. Zduncyk believes this is because both pathways are based on effort and not skill/talent. Both of these classes allow students to work more creatively and hands-on which can be a great outlet not only for expression but also promote overall better mental health while also allowing students to gain confidence and learn in areas that they might not have explored or thought of as a future career/hobby. “This year I have had multiple students discover a real passion for the video production field and are now planning to major in it in college,” said Zyduncyk.
Additionally, there is a new Meteorology elective taught by a science teacher, Mr. Rowe, offered next year. This class is a half-year elective and is offered to students of any grade level. This class is being offered as either an honors course or a level one class. Mr. Rowe is the only science teacher certified to teach this new class. Rowe got his certification to teach this class from UCONN and then brought it to the administration of CPS to get it approved. Once it got approved at the beginning of this school year, it then got added to the elective options for next year.
Throughout Maddy Caruso’s three years so far at Morgan, she has taken Culinary and has enjoyed it immensely. Caruso has learned a variety of different life skills regarding cooking and baking, and that has stemmed her interest to pursue a career in Culinary arts in college. During the time Caruso took this class, she has provided food for many annual school events such as Veterans Day. Her most recent event that she is taking part in is the annual Cupcake Wars held at the beginning of April. Caruso is partnered with her classmate, David Marszalek, in hopes of winning when results come out after April break.
Senior Wyatt Luke has taken many elective and core classes that have interested him, but one that has stuck out to him was Entrepreneurship, taught by Mr. Richetelli. Luke felt like every unit that was taught gave him an important life skill and will follow through with the skills throughout the rest of his life. Another class taught by Mr. Richetelli that was very informative to Luke was Personal Finance. “Personal Finance helps you be able to set goals for yourself,” said Luke.
The most valuable class that is offered here, according to sophomore Hope Savage, is Spanish. Savage believes Spanish is very important to know, especially post-high school. “If you are going into a work field where you need the ability to speak and know what is being said, it is good to know so you converse properly,” said Savage.
Schedules for the 2026 school students will be released two weeks before the school year starts next year.
