By: Alejandra Espinoza
@owlfeed_ale

There is a controversial predicament that students, administration, and teachers have found themselves in. Administration locks the school bathrooms as soon as the final bell rings which has some students very distraught.

When our school principal, Mr. Molina, was asked about the after school bathroom policy, he said, “The bathrooms get locked so that students could go to tutoring or to sports. If they are going to sports, they use the locker room. If they are going to tutoring obviously we want to get them to tutoring right away and then once tutoring starts we unlock the bathrooms.”

That concise explanation provided clarity but then I brought up the fact that we want less students going to the bathroom during class so many students wait until after school to use them if they need to during 6th hour. He said that “At the end of the day students can go to the student service bathrooms and the locker rooms. But that does make sense as to when the bathrooms get locked. I will take that under advise and maybe leave them open until tutoring starts and then lock them.”

Mr. Molina explained how this was much more than just a bathroom policy as it is a liability policy as well. According to him, there has to be staff watching students at all times, so he wants minimize the number of unsupervised students. Our principal has the school’s best interest at heart he wants to and limit the “nonsense” that occurs after school in the bathrooms.

When interviewing a student who is very active on campus and involved in after school programs, Kallie Swanson displayed strong feelings towards the after school bathroom policy.

Kallie, the National Honor Society secretary said, “I think it’s ridiculous because there are so many kids here at Agua Fria and if you don’t pee in class you have to go during a club meeting or a sport and it’s hard to use them if they are locked. When they lock them they are telling all the clubs and everyone who is super involved at school that they can’t go to the bathroom and I think it’s terrible.”

When I mentioned Mr. Molina’s explanation behind the policy and how there are supposed to be other bathrooms available after school, she said, “I don’t think that’s true because I am at club meetings a lot because I am an officer for a club so I am there all the time and there are never bathrooms unlocked.”

I get that there are good intentions by locking the bathrooms, but it ends up as a disservice towards the students. Hopefully we can all find a middle ground with this bathroom policy.