By Grayson Zoller
Of all the things that one would consider essential in a public restroom, a door on the stall is certainly up there. Unfortunately, some of the restrooms at Delta High School aren’t exactly the highest quality ones out there.
But what has led to them being in the state that they’re in? What has led to stalls without locking doors being present in almost every bathroom and the presence of a soap dispenser intact and on the wall becoming a rare sight?
It’s a combination of the cost to replace materials and “general mischief,” according to assistant principal Mr. Ross Elwood.
Students have been noticeably worse about the restrooms over the past three years, noted both principal Mr. Chris Conley and Elwood. Students have crammed toilet paper into toilets, ripped soap dispensers off walls, and hung on stall doors, which can cause the locks to no longer work as the doors become misaligned.
As far as any reason for the wanton destruction, both said they can only guess. “I don’t understand why someone would want to do that,” Elwood said. “Do they have an audience when they do that? Do they do it by themselves? I don’t know.”
Conley speculated a bit further, saying, “I think there’s a lack of attachment to our building from some students. … If they are attached and making commitments and relationships with others, they’re going to take better care of themselves, other people, and what we have here.”
Both said that they will sometimes randomly check bathrooms as a deterrent, but that they haven’t found much success, simply due to the size of the school and the number of stalls they would have to check constantly.
Elwood doesn’t think that this solution is the right way to go about improving the quality of the restrooms, though.
“I’d hope that people would just have enough pride in their school that this is going to stop,” he said.
But how much is this costing the school? Head custodian Lisa Baker says it’s expensive to keep maintaining the bathrooms.
Baker also commented that there are not spares of anything, and that it can take months to order and receive replacement parts. Doing work on the bathroom also requires tools and supplies that aren’t common. “We can’t just go into Menards and buy a sink,” Baker said.
Baker also commented on the problem only becoming relevant over the past few years, and has no real idea where it comes from. “They think they’re getting back [at something], but they’re really hurting themselves.”
Overall, it is up to the students to make sure that they keep their bathrooms clean and in a good condition. Your school is a reflection of the people in it, so make sure that it’s a reflection worth looking at.
