Bathrooms in school aren’t just “Bathrooms”

Bathrooms in school aren’t just “Bathrooms”

By Kylan Phakonekham

Some students have taken advantage of using the bathrooms for anything but their intended purpose, affecting those who want to be able to use the bathroom for just that.

While many students use the bathrooms for the intended purpose, some students use it as a way to break school rules and do things they aren't supposed to. These include vaping in the bathroom, using the bathroom to settle things between two or more students, or a way to get out of class. Staff and teachers find it challenging to prevent students from breaking rules in the bathroom due to the privacy students have to use them in school.

Despite those, some staff have used various methods to keep students away from these activities. As for Nashua High School North, they have begun to do sweeps in bathrooms to make sure students are respecting the privilege of bathroom use in school. Jerome Zaccone Jr, graphic design teacher at North states, “I don’t really use the bathroom throughout the day but I imagine there's vaping, skipping, and sexual behavior that has occurred in the past.”

Even though he doesn’t see it happen, he knows it's happening throughout the day. He also says “They are sanitary, but the bathrooms can use an upgrade…when I walk in, generally paper towels on the floor and toilets unflushed.”

Zaccone infers that the bathrooms are sanitary but the majority of time he goes in there it is dirty and cluttered.

When some students use the bathrooms regardless of what the rules are, they make others that just want to use the restroom feel unsafe. Many students stand and talk in the bathroom making students uncomfortable doing their business as they feel like they are being watched.

“I usually don’t use the bathrooms in school because they're gross, but when I walk in there’s usually ten people smoking…I can feel the tension in the bathroom as I'm stared at walking in making me uncomfortable,” says Jacob Munroe, a North sophomore.

Munroe also stated that “You might find a vape cart or edibles in the toilet.”

Munroe reveals how unsanitary and unsafe bathrooms are as kids are flushing chemicals down the drains, contaminating the pipes and potentially clogging them. Edibles, also known as a cannabis-infused food item are infused with a cannabis-like extract that people often use to get under the influence. These chemical-like substances are harmful to have in the sewer system as it pollutes the water making it dangerous for humans and animals to live.

The reality of feeling unsafe and uncomfortable in school bathrooms can cause many problems. These problems include, using the nurse’s bathroom and students holding in their business until they are home. These can become major problems for school as it will affect a student’s learning and cause them to go off track. As some students use the bathrooms for its intended purpose, it's safe to say that what Nashua High North School is doing for these problems has tremendously decreased the number of students in bathrooms during class.