Ok West High, it’s now time to head on home! We hear this frequently after school. Did you ever wonder why we were rushed out of school? Why did we have to leave school so soon? Shouldn’t we be allowed to hang out on campus with our friends?

English teacher and activities director, Mr. Arash Behnam had similar views on the topic. “I think kids should be able to stay on campus.” Behnam believes that there is a difference between loitering and being actively involved in school. He said, “A great school has great clubs, athletics and activities.” Being allowed to stay longer after school would help West High become more than just an average school.

However, loitering is not the main reasoning behind this rule. According to Mr. Troy Brown, student’s safety is the number one reason why we are rushed out of campus at 3:00 pm. Brown said, “We want kids home and safe…we want [the] campus to be safe.” Since there is little to no supervision after school, the students and the campus are in danger. Students can do reckless things to the campus or to each other, and we don’t want that.

When it comes to schools, teachers and staff members, their number one priority would be their students’ safety. Our parents trust them to provide safety when necessary. So it would only make sense that we are told leave as soon as school is over. With no supervision, I admit we can do some crazy things. And those crazy things can lead to harm sometimes. To prevent that from happening, the West High team has our back!

If you have to need to stay after school, and you need some places to go, consider these options: go to study lab to catch up on homework, visit the library during its extended hours or join a club that interests you.