The continuous clicking of keys and even a slight movement from taking your phone out of your pocket can cause someone to look at you instead of paying attention to their work. Every moment wasted by distraction adds up and the more time spent unfocused, the less productive work is done.

The question of whether to allow cell phones  has been debated over the years; this year at FAHS, administration voted “yes”. While there are few benefits to texting, the set-backs seem to overrule.

The intended reason for a study hall is to accomplish homework and to study, of course. If students are not using their time effectively by using their cell phones their progress on homework is delayed and maybe even ignored.

“Students in study hall are texting other classmates in school which are probably sitting in class,” Teacher Sharon Kontny said.

Kontny, who is against the policy, has consulted with administration about whether it is appropriate for cell phones to be in use during schools hours. Teachers have to be cautious with this new rule because students could be abusing their rights by texting answers around to other students in classes.  Once an answer is out through a text, you cannot take it back and  have already cheated.

Breaking school policies are at risk with texting. Cyber-bullying is also a way of abusing cell phone use.  In a study halls you have more free time to text friends the latest gossip which is violating the privacy of others.

”Rumors can spread quickly and with the new amenity of the cell phones in study halls you can communicate them a lot faster along with more free time to use during the day.” Sophomore Sam Gukich said.

Even though texting in study halls can serve as an advantage for some,  it may be paving the way towards a disaser for those trying to work.

Texting in study halls is giving the students a new way to connect with others; with this new option  the students are being treated more and more like young adults.This is preparing high-schoolers for the world after they graduate.  For many students this preparation is extremely important. At the moment, though, students are able to use smart phones to look up information for homework, enabling them to get things done in study halls and have more time after school for sports and other activities.

Many students desire the communication with family during school to notify them of things such as staying late after school. Since students are now able to text during study halls it takes away some of the after school chaos between parents and their kids.

During study halls they are not allowing talking, so being able to text it gives friends a silent way to communicate with each other.  Letting  students text in study halls is giving us the chance to talk with out the constant noise of voices, leaving it peaceful to students  who are  working  on homework. Many students use texting to communicate with classmates who they don’t have a lot of other classes with.

“It gives me a break from studying and I can talk to people I don’t see a lot,” Sophomore Abigail Stahl said.

Students who have jobs can message co-workers to request a back-up in the event that they get sick or otherwise cannot make it that day. Being able to contact others during school without having to go through the office eliminates stress for both students and the office receptionists.

This new privilege takes away the urge to text in other classes; this allows students to pay more attention during credited courses.Teachers will no longer have to deal with reminding students to keep away from their phones during class. This allows for a smoother class period without as many distractions.

The staff has given us a new responsibility. Having more power to communicate with others is a great option that FAHS gives their students. Being able to communicate with family members, more freedom and less urge to text in other classes has opened many doors for students.

The biggest money drainer during prom is the purchase of a dress.  Bridal stores and other boutique-like places sell designer, top-of-the-line dresses.  However, spending $400 on a dress is extremely wasteful considering a girl wears it for maybe seven hours tops.  That means the buyer is spending $57.14 per hour to wear that dress.  

This number varies depending on the cost of the dress and the amount of time it’s worn.  What kind of student can afford to spend almost $60 dollars an hour on the dress alone? Even with a job, this is extremely pricey, considering most students with jobs are paid between $7 and $9 an hour.  Some parents may pay for students dresses, however this is an extreme burden to put on one’s parents.  

Tux rentals can get expensive as well.  If one really thinks about it, there is not much a difference between a suit and a tux except the higher cost.  Suits can look just as classy as tuxes as long as they have a clean put together person in them.

Dresses are only one aspect of prom expenses.  Many juniors have decided to take party buses, limos and even school buses.  This adds an astronomical amount of money onto the already pricey evening.

Restaurants usually make parties of eight or more pay a gratuity, or a built in tax for having the waiter/waitress serve such a big table. This can add to the bill big time if a group has a large number of people eating at an expensive restaurant.  A 15% tip may not seem like a large amount of money, but if the bill for the table is $100 dollars that’s 15 extra dollars added on to the bill automatically, not including the tip.

Realistically a typical student does not have the money to blow on this sort of evening.  In high school there is a big struggle with being treated like a child when one wants to be treated like an adult.   A part of earning money is learning how to use it responsibly.

Many see prom as a big evening worth all the cost.  Let’s take a reality check.  Fort Atkinson is a town in southern Wisconsin, not on the west coast.  The amount of money one has or the amount one is able to spend does not heighten social status like seen on TV shows.  It doesn’t make one more popular or allow one to have a better evening.  

Prom is what the students make it.  Huge transportation costs along with clothing and dining costs do not make anyone have a better evening.  No one needs to spend or have their parents spend loads of money in order to have fun.  Sure, prom is a classy event.  That doesn’t mean its a night to blow the college fund.

If students want to be treated like responsible adults they should be conscience of their money management abilities.  Prom is not worth spending hundreds of dollars on one evening.

Many athletes strive for the audience’s excitement.  When their spectators cheer, they get pumped up and when the fans get silent, they become determined to improve.  The journey through the last 200 meters for a distance track runner or the final basket for a basketball athlete may come as a downfall without an audience.  If their fans suddenly cease to show up, their confidence decreases, and they do not compete as well as normal.

Another thing to consider is if a spectator has purchased an athletic pass, why should they still have to pay?  It is unfortunate that there are several tournaments and meets that athletes depend on their audience to attend, but paying for the pass along with each of these events gets more expensive than it seems.  Most events that require additional payment are those where the athletes needs an audience most and by charging spectators an additional fee, we are pushing them away from supporting our athletes.  These passes should be good for any sporting event including games, meets and tournaments after being bought at the beginning of the year.  

Others feel that charging these spectators for the events helps cover other costs throughout the year; however, donations are often made to the FAHS athletic department, and concession stands definitely make money.  Local businesses also sponsor the athletic department or make donations frequently.   Why not work more towards those things (talking to businesses about donating and running various fundraisers) rather than forcing those who care about our athletes to have to pay?  It is better to ask for the money than make people pay.

Speaking of other ways to raise money, there are plenty of times during a year when athletes dig out the salesman in them and work to sell various items as a fundraiser for whatever organization they participate in.  Frankly, these items items are overpriced but are bought regardless from most of the people who are getting charged for these meets.  The fans contribute to the organizations in different ways, so its not like all funds are lost if the admission charges are dropped.

As a school, we want our athletes to be the best they can be and compete as strong as they can.  More and more, spectators pass up the opportunity to support the athletes because of the extra money they have to pay at these important tournaments and meets.  The money should be raised by holding more fundraisers or promoting the concession stands, not pushing the audience away.

Valedictorians of high schools around the country get scholarships which do not even compare to the value of most other financial aid or other scholarship opportunities.  This is forgotten.  The students that are eligible to earn this title deserve it.  Taking it away from them seems extremely unreasonable and ultimately unfair, especially when the students who would achieve this title are the ones who basically contribute to the school the most.  Shouldn’t the school reward them?

Upon asking around, the answers that have come to my attention (when I question people about why we no longer have class rank) are generally the same:  the competition stresses out those who are not ranked as high.  It really appears that we are feeling sorry for those who would not earn the title.  Earn.  That word is a big one to recognize in this situation.  While it may be upsetting to some that they do not qualify for a high rank, the way the issue is being approached is taking away from the students that have rightfully earned what they have worked for.  This is definitely not fair.

Sometimes, for a student to learn how to mature, stress is good.  In the real world, if an adult is overwhelmed at work, their boss is not going to say, “Oh, it’s okay…  You don’t have to do your job which is crucial to our clients.”  What they are going to say is, “It’s your job, figure out how to handle it so our clients are happy.”  Maybe that sounds harsh, but it’s the truth and by eliminating class rank because it stresses some students out, the school is teaching the opposite of what students need to learn.  High school students will not succeed without knowing how to handle stress when it arises.

Working towards the valedictorian honor is also a great goal to put in front of the faces that care about it.  Many determined students will work harder if they know they are working towards a little extra bliss.  Even though this may not be the primary reason students strive for success, it can become a part of it, so giving students the opportunity to have the title of valedictorian may encourage them to do even better in school.  Also, a student who is determined to do well will also work towards a better reputation which will improve their futures.

Let’s think about how this is affecting our school, our students, and the future.  Bring back class rank and valedictorian because it has been eliminated for the wrong reasons.  The absence of class rank and valedictorian is bringing more negative aspects rather than positive.

Most people who like sanitation would say yuck! Once students began searching for their things, the piles became unorganized, mixing the clothing of both boys and girls. This is gross especially because there were swim suits and undergarments involved. Not only was everything damp from the wet suits but also from the disgusting linger of perspiration! When  things from several different students were mixed together, it was stomach-wrenching to have to dig through it all just to find your personal belongings.

               Speaking of personal belongings, is it truly anyone’s right to touch our stuff without permission? We are always told that it is important not to touch the things that do not belong to us. Students should have that same right:  to be treated with respect. They would definitely not enjoy it if we just threw their things on the ground like they didn’t matter. Some items can get expensive, and regardless of the cost, they were treated like trash.
               Students also noticed that upon looking through the collection of items things of theirs were missing. This means that there is evidence of possible theft. The purpose of lockers is to prevent this from happening. Since everything was exposed to the entire population of our school, the property of students was removed from their rightful protection. That doesn’t seem very fair to those who trusted that their assigned lockers were in fact a safe and secure place for their things.  
               Locks were evidently deemed to be garbage as well because those too were taken and put into a bucket. This is sad because it shows ignorance which affects those who don’t have the money to buy a new lock just because the someone decided to be inconsiderate. It’s unbelievable to think that people have such a lack of respect for others.
               Through this occurrence,  not only students were left frustrated,  but parents were too as they are the ones who pay for most of these things.  Now they are expected to go out and buy new things because even if students did find their things in the gross disarray, who would want to wear them again after they were commingled with the sweat from others?
    So, besides students and parents, who else has been affected? Let’s talk about Mrs. Kopetsky. As many know, she has a harder job than it may seem. She is constantly at work cleaning the laundry of sports teams and gym classes. While she has many responsibilities already, this event has put even more on her shoulders.  We now are expecting her to sort through these disgusting items.
               Let this occurrence be a reminder the entire population of our high school to be civil and respect the property of others because it is the right thing to do. If  high school students know that, then of course whoever participated in this event should too. I will be requesting that my lock be returned to me along with the rest of my things, and the same demand should be made by the rest of the students whose property was treated as such. Hopefully, this will not happen again.

“I would hope that [the rule] would encourage responsibility,” District Nutritional Coordinator Barb Waara said.  

Isn’t it responsible enough of us to remember our id number? Bringing in cash is less important than knowing your id number.  Our id number is used for several things like checking out books in library, accessing PowerSchool, logging onto online portfolios and also for scheduling. Memorizing ID numbers should be a priority for students, and this rule is just encouraging them not to. Along with responsibly, the lunch staff also provided another reason for the rule.

“It slows the line down if you do not have your ID,” Waara said.

This brings up another point of frustration because the lunch staff will take cash before your ID number. The reason why this is so ridiculous is because unfortunately, it takes ten times longer to generate change for those who bring cash than to type in an account number. All students are doing when they lose their ID cards is purchasing their lunches with cash. When a student loses his or her id card, they just bring in cash because they want to avoid waiting, but they are the ones that really hold up the line.

This rule can also be quite unfair to girls in particular. All guys have to do is slip their IDs in their wallets (which they have on them consistently), whereas ladies often do not carry a wallet. Is it really fair that girls are most subject to wait since its easier for guys to keep theirs on them? This is just one more example for the foolishness of this law.

    The other programs that use students’ ID information do not hesitate to allow us to use our ID numbers. The difference in policies throughout the school is irritating and not really needed, so why go through the trouble? We have a lot of rules and regulations at Fort Atkinson High School- many of which are definitely needed; this is not one of them.

“I have made a lot of friends in different clubs. Each club has its own ‘group’. I know kids from a lot of different areas of school and grades. Also I have a lot of fun with the activities we do,” Senior Rebecca McHenry said.

Some clubs are thought to be very gratifying. The Community Service Outreach Club, Students Against Drunk Driving and Environmental Club are examples of such clubs. These clubs all provide students opportunities to grow into well-shaped young adults.

The Community Service Outreach Club allows students to get involved by doing community service projects, which helps the students to do their part while giving them the ability to spice up applications for jobs and colleges, and it helps seniors to fulfill volunteer hours necessary for Government. There are a number of other clubs that are involved with community service as well.

“Both NHS and Student Senate are great ways to help out our school and community. Some of the programs they do, like the NHS blood drive, make a difference in our area,” McHenry said.

Other students opt to join clubs that provide them the opportunity to express their creativity in a more visionary way, such as the Forensics Team and Art League.

For Forensics, students practice public speaking in one of fifteen categories and then go on to compete in tournaments. Depending on how well they do, club members are able to earn a bar or letter when the season is over.

In Art League, students with a knack for testing their imaginations get the opportunity to create and feature their artwork over the school year.

Clubs are a great way for students to meet new people while becoming more active in the high school and community.

“I think that couples showing affection is fine but NOT on Facebook. It’s just tacky! We’re supposed to be young adults, and I have never seen an adult all over their boyfriend/girlfriend on Facebook!” Senior Michelle Harris said.

I don’t want to see some couple making out on a couch, taking up valuable space on my news feed. Why a couple would want pictures displayed of their “personal” moments is beyond me.  Isn’t it bad enough that I can’t walk to my classes without seeing couples all over each other?

Not only is this new type of PDA completely unnecessary, but there are also repercussions to posting these pictures. Many know that when looking at potential employees, employers first check out Facebook pages. Future employers may find this unprofessional, which could cost you a job.

The next time you want to take a picture of yourself and your significant other getting creepy, stop. Either keep it to yourself or don’t take it at all because no one else wants to see it.