I believe there are, in my opinion, glaring problems with the daily student life in ERHS. I’m talking about consistent frustrations that slow the school day down for some, or ruin it for others. A few examples include the long lunch lines, congestion at the school entrances, and overall bathroom accessibility. These problems create unnecessary crowds and wasted time before students even begin their day. Lunch lines have a similar issue. If you’re not among the first to arrive, you can easily spend 15 minutes or more just waiting to get food.

Generally, bathrooms are consistently unclean, and things that break stay broken for long periods of time. I think it’s important to highlight the importance of issues like these, as if we can find root causes, we can potentially find other issues and solutions.

My main point and contention are supposed to be centered around the quality of life for students, both leaving and entering Eleanor Roosevelt High School. We should not only be asking staff, students’ opinions on matters. This leads to another point of things affecting students and staff directly. When it comes to staff, Ms. Erica Cureton highlighted a relevant concern, stating, ‘‘I think improvements that could be made would have been the school district providing us with more equipment.’’ This clearly can point to a broader issue, like when staff are stretched thin or lack adequate resources. Maintenance and custodial equipment are needed to properly clean restrooms, quickly repair broken facilities, and manage high-traffic areas during peak times like lunch.

Being pessimistic about these issues doesn’t solve anything, though. I believe these situations are made up for in full. For example, ERHS Clubs, Sports, and extracurricular activities provide students with opportunities to explore interests that can build friendships, which usually engage with the school community outside of classrooms. I believe that these minor details, compared to larger challenges, play an important role, as having accessible places to work allows students to manage their time effectively, and reducing stress in the long run could help with minimizing overglaring ERHS problems.