MV currently faces an epidemic. Students are no longer using the restrooms for their designed purpose. Restrooms are now used as a place to avoid attending class, fighting, hanging out with friends, and doing drugs. I am sure many may have smelled and heard of what is happening in our school restrooms during passing periods and class time.

Students misusing restrooms is nothing new to MV or any other school. However, MV’s situation is different because of how commonly the restrooms are being abused by our student body. Every time I walk into a school restroom during a passing period, more stall doors are closed by students vaping or smoking than by students appropriately utilizing the restroom. Occasionally when I walk into the restroom during a class period, I am greeted by a classmate skipping or attempting to avoid attending class by hiding out there. 

I recognize our administration’s efforts to prevent and spearhead this issue, but I also notice how they are not successfully stopping students from abusing the restrooms. Amidst periods, I have walked past administrators monitoring who enters and exits restroom entrances. I don’t understand how this protects students or prevents them from blatantly misusing the restrooms. Are they standing there waiting to hear someone let out a cough? Even if they hear students coughing, how can they prove they are vaping or smoking and not just suffering from a sore throat or a cold? Administration has also begun to lock restrooms to limit the number of places where students can skip class or meet up with friends, which I believe has positively served their mission of preventing the abuse of our school restrooms.

I believe there are many more initiatives our administration can take to protect MV’s students. First, the school could purchase more metal detectors so students would have a more difficult time bringing contraband into our school. If we make smuggling drugs into our school more testing, students will be discouraged from attempting to carry contraband into our school building. As we search for ways to prevent students from using restrooms as spots to avoid class, the solutions are tougher to locate. Despite that challenge, I have discovered a few options to handle students who fail to attend class and instruction. Instead of administrators only patrolling outside the restrooms between periods, they stick behind after the bell to make sure students in the restroom attend class after they finish instead of hanging around until the period ends.

When it comes to stopping students from doing drugs in the restrooms, I have a more radical solution to this problem. I want you to ask yourself, what would happen if you were caught by the police smoking weed, in possession of weed, or under the influence of weed? Was your answer to that question subjected to drug charges, court-ordered drug counseling, probation, juvenile detention, or jail? If so, you would be correct, So why can students smoke weed in our school and avoid being punished like they would be if they weren’t in school?

When MV students are caught with, smoking, or under the influence of drugs, they’re suspended, which I believe serves just as well as putting a bandaid on a broken arm. My solution to this problem is that our administration takes this seriously and starts protecting the greater student body.

MV administrators, I hope you recognize my perspective, consider my ideas, and stop neglecting the safety and well-being of our students. This epidemic has gone unchecked for far too long. It is your responsibility and duty to do what you can to shield your students from harmful decisions and behaviors.