Preparations for the 2025-2026 school year are now underway. On January 15, students at Fossil Ridge High School were given a registration packet along with instructions on how to make their class choices for next year.

Each year Fossil strives to give students a schedule that works for them and their credit needs.

“The upside is most students get the classes that they request unless there’s a major conflict sometimes with classes that are only offered once or twice, like an AP course or a special elective,” Counselor Kelli Mcphee said.

When filling out the registration form, students must add three alternative classes in cases where their first requests are not possible.

“When there isn’t enough space in a class we go to the alternates that the student has chosen,” McPhee said. “That’s why it’s important for students to write down three alternatives that they would be okay with taking.”

A main concern for students is that they don’t know which classes to take, which is why the Class Information Fair will be held on Wednesday, January 22 from 9:40 a.m. to 11:40 a.m.

“A big question is like, ‘How much homework will I have in this class?’ And really, only the teachers that teach you that class can answer that,” Counselor Carolyn Fries said.

During the week of January 27, each student will have a meeting with their counselor to go over the form and ensure it is all put into the computer correctly.

“After the counselor meetings is when the work really starts, [Principal Mark] Barry works with his team to decide how many sections of each class there are, then [Assistant Principal Scott] Torvik starts actually building the master schedule for next year based on requests,” Fries said. 

The Fossil staff hopes to be finished with all schedules by February 7.

 “We ask students to be mindful about their choices and use their resources,” Counselor Nicole Alvarado said. “We just want to make sure that students really have a good idea of what they’re planning to take for next year.”