Coming back from Christmas break on Jan. 4, students walked into first period and heard the new warning bell that sounded at 8:30 a.m. During fall semester, there were issues with the intercoms not working and the bell sometimes wouldn’t go off during the times of transitioning, which is why McIntosh came back with a new intercom system for the second semester.

“The speakers were implemented in the 80’s and needed to be replaced in some areas of the school, our old intercom was a safety issue when it came to the intercom function,” according to Principal Maggie Walls in an email interview.

“The bells and the intercom are one system. The front office needs to be able to call into classrooms and communicate with teachers. Fortunately, the new bells [and] intercom are amazing and we have not had any issues since they were installed. At 8:30 there is a unique chime that alerts students to get to the first period. It is a warning bell and the new system allows for unique tones. Our previous system did not,” Walls said.

Some students reported that the bell made them feel comforted or somewhere they would want to be opposed to the sound of the previous bell.

“[The new bell] is more calm than the old bell. It doesn’t give [a] sense of urgency, it makes me feel a little more secure,” said Addy Blair.

Other students had differing opinions about the bell and theories on why the bell was changed.

“It sounds like the bells you hear in retirement homes, [the administration] tried to spice it up but it’s not [good],” junior Jack Flournoy said on the Legend yearbook’s Jan. 4 TikTok (@mcintoshybk).

Students have noticed that there was a different sound at 8:30 a.m.

“I’m anticipating a new bell noise everyday,” sophomore Noah Harris said.

Media Specialist Emily Hodge had a positive outlook on the new bell.

“I like the new bell. I like that [it’s different] for the beginning of school and then more of a normal bell during the day. I think it was too much having the same bell every period. I [also] like the bell because it reminds me of the movie “Grease,” there is a bell in they use in that movie and if you’re of my generation it just makes you happy. I like change, I think it’s a happy bell,” Hodge said.