A monthly column: The logic behind a closed campus

[dropcap size=small]I[/dropcap]t’s that time of year again, folks.

We detest the disgustingly fluctuating weather, incessant alarm clock beeps at 6 a.m., and the same mundane school policies we have faced year after year.

And, as we do so often, we try to alter the guidelines and regulations and satisfy our need to rebel: whether it be by countless petitions, a weak protest, or straight up disregarding the rules.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m just as opposed as you are to the dress code that’s insensitive to the 100 plus degree heat. I personally prefer to wear shorts and a tank top in these hellish months so I don’t get heat stroke and die—especially since we aren’t allowed to sit in the air-conditioned hallways at lunch or nutrition.

But, for all the things I disagree with, there are some rules I understand just why they can’t change.

Open campus has been one of the most sought-after ideas for decades here at PRHS.

But, as umpteen petitions have floated around throughout the years, few moves have been made further than just that: a petition.

Sure, being able to get over 1,000 signatures and almost 200 Facebook likes on the petition is ace, but obstacles such as students’ apathy and the project’s impracticality will collapse the project, similarly to the “Free the Bearcats” campaign from the 2015-16 school year.

Senior Class President Brian Kragh deserves credit for taking the reins. His next step is pushing the open campus campaign to a place of actual administrative consideration. He plans to “get two-thirds of the school involved.”

As I see it, what we fail to take into consideration as students are the impracticality it would be to support an open campus lunch period at this point in time.

There are just too many variables.

Our lunch period is only 35 minutes long, and with the inefficient layout of our parking lot, it would take 10 plus minutes just to get out of school.

Plus, the limited fast food restaurants within a reasonable distance of our school will all have lines out the door and drive-thru making it difficult for a speedy grab-and-go lunch. Liability is also an issue; we are still the responsibility of the school regardless of our whereabouts, and with an administration that doesn’t have a tight grip on everything quite yet, it’s just too hard to make it happen.

I applaud you for your efforts, friends.

But as I look logically at this situation — and suppress my desire to get the hell out of here — open campus is a lost cause, unless there is a campaign that is genuine and strenuous in effort

Keep petitioning if you wish, but when somebody throws in the towel again, don’t say I didn’t warn you.