It’s the end of summer and students make their way back into school. The start of the 2023-2024 school year arrives, and so does a new bell. The thoughts of all returning students are, “why does the bell sound like that?”

One new face to the Utica scene expresses her thoughts.

“sounds like 1800 bells,” sophomore Mylee Barrons said. “I don’t like it.”

One student specifically recalls this bell sounding like something from their childhood.

“I think it’s too quiet,” senior Grace Jenkins said. “It sounds like a Disney Channel bell and I don’t like it.”

Returning students aren’t quite used to the sound yet.

“Sounds really weird,” senior Paisley Heatley said, “almost like a train.”

The ears of many will need to adjust to the new ringing around the halls.

“They sound like cow bells,” senior Justice Woodall said. “They honestly should just go back to what they used to be.”

Some underclassmen have similar opinions as well.

“Honestly it sounds stupid,” junior Nic Welch said. “Sounds like a real bell but it’s just bad.”

One student appreciates the change.

“I think they are good,” junior Viktor Mikonowicz said. “They are a little funky but I like the warning bells.”

its a big difference to last years.

“It’s different, but just something I’m not used to,” junior Jonathan Carter said, “but I like the change.”

Clearly, the new bell is not liked by many students, but a few are okay with the change. One big difference being an added warning bell. There is a five-minute warning bell for first hour and every class after receives a one-minute warning. This way, any students losing track of time can just listen for that warning and know they have to hurry to class.

“The bells are very different and as a school we’re not quite used to them,” teacher Jaclyn Moore said. “Right now I’m not a huge fan, sounds like a cemetery or church bell, but maybe in time we’ll get used to it and it’ll be fine.”

Many teachers agree that the bells are different, but better than before.

“The other ones were really annoying, especially during lunch the bells were really loud and extremely long,” teacher Anthony Sader said. “I like the warnings but not the cowbell. It just makes it seem like we’re farm animals.”

Its a very different sound to be heard.

“I think they are interesting. They sound cartoon and I’m not a big fan, but with that being said, I also hated the old bell,” teacher Erin Woddall said. “It was extremely high pitched and would last what felt like an hour. So comparing it to the old bell, it’s better.”

It is going to take a little bit for students and staff to get used to the new bells, but overall seems to be beneficial.