Bright red lockers on either side of the hall, most with the familiar backwards locks that signify a student who has chosen not to use their locker. But why is that? Why do people decide to relinquish a space to leave their extra items during school?
“I only used it for extra materials freshman year, and I stopped sophomore year because it was too out of the way and I didn’t really need it,” said Lucian Spiteri ‘26, “I don’t use my locker now because I don’t have too much stuff and it is too much of a hassle to get stuff from it.”
Of the 700 students at Bernards High School, 352 students have claimed their lockers. 118 of those students are juniors and seniors, and 234 of the students who have claimed their lockers are freshmen and sophomores. This means that half of the student body at BHS does not have a locker, and almost double the amount of freshmen and sophomores use their lockers in comparison to juniors and seniors.
“I stopped using a locker sophomore year because I had one freshman year but I never used it,” said Grace Constantelos ‘26, “I just carry my bag with me so I don’t need a locker, and also there’s not enough time in between classes to go to the locker if I need something for the class so I just carry it all.”
Many students decide not to use their locker in later high school years, realizing that it is more of a hassle to keep a locker. Thus, less juniors and seniors use their lockers, realizing through their first high school years that they do not have as much use for them. While using lockers everyday seems to be inconvenient, that does not mean there are not times when the lockers are convenient.
“I use a locker because it helps me find somewhere to fit my sports bag and textbooks when I don’t need them,” said Gabrielle Omlor ‘29, “My home room teacher said we didn’t have to use them but I still kept mine anyway.”
Lockers can be convenient for athletes to store sports equipment. Many athletes carry separate bags for their sports necessities, thus, instead of carrying those items around all day, using a locker is a better solution.
“I use my locker to put my sports bag in,” said Riley Omlor ‘26.
As well as this, lockers can be used in the practical sense. While they may not be used every day, lockers can be beneficial in case there is a seasonal item or other objects that may need to be stored during the school day.
“I use my locker just in case I need to put something in my locker during the day,” said Vanessa Moffett ‘26, “like if it’s raining, I like to leave my coat inside instead of carrying it around all day.”
Large coats or umbrellas can be stored in one’s locker during the day, which is a better solution to bringing them from class to class. Another way a student can use their locker is by storing their afternoon books in their locker in the morning and switching them out for their afternoon class books during lunch.
Students should claim their lockers for the convenience they bring, whether that be on a day-to-day basis or occasionally. One can put a lock on a locker and not use the whole; however, if one does not claim a lock and they are in need of a locker, they do not have that option should an issue arise.
