Glenelg Bathrooms: To Chain or Not to Chain

By Sarah Kang

Seventy-seven percent.    
That is the percent increase in E-cigarette use among high school students as compared to 2017, as stated in Truth Initiative. Today, numerous teens are found to consume nicotine more often than usual. According to Truth Initiative, 56% of those aged 15-17 who have vaped in the past month have used their device on three or more days. The use of such devices have clearly displayed an abrupt increase, and they have been found in school environments as well.

Ever since the rise of nicotine and vaping, Glenelg High School has always tried to prevent the usage of such drugs in school and create a drug-free environment. However, the usage of drugs, especially the vaping and juuling, has recently alarmed the community significantly. Sophomore Dominic Patsy, shocked by the drug use, stated that, “The actions of juuling and vaping are so common these days. I see people doing it very often and it is hard to avoid encountering it.”

It is no surprise that juuling occurs in both the women’s and men’s bathrooms, but some may question why the women’s bathrooms were not chained. The significant difference between the two bathrooms is vandalism. A couple of weeks ago, hordes of male students were found damaging school property. Specifically, soap dispensers were kicked off their racks and toilets were flooded.

To prevent such situations from happening, the administration decided to prop the bathroom doors open using door stops, but students managed to get rid of the door stops and continued their harmful actions. The administration, then approached the situation with chains holding the doors; however, the chains were removed after a short period of time and the doors were closed. Why?
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After speaking to Glenelg principal, Mr. David Burton, he stated that “you would not normally see a chain in a school environment, so we decided to get rid of it. At the moment, we are looking for better solutions, perhaps magnetic doors, to keep the doors opened and have a drug-free and non-vandalized environment at Glenelg.” In fact, many parents complained about the use of the chain to keep the doors open, so the chains were also taken off.
Currently, the administration is looking for a more efficient method to replace the use of the chain. They hope to keep Glenelg’s environment and atmosphere free of drugs and vandalism. Stay tuned to hear what the new method will be for opening the doors!