Valerie Patlan Abellaneda

Senior, Ivan Haro opened his locker for the first time.

A significant number of MEHS students do not use their lockers.

According to Google AI Overview, 91.2% of students at a high school in Alliance, Ohio, do not use their lockers at all. Only middle schoolers tend to use their lockers, unlike high schoolers who generally do not. Additionally, 66% of surveyed students said they don’t use their locker because they were frustrated or worried about being late. The time it takes to get to their lockers or open them often makes them late—especially for students who don’t know how to open lockers with the codes. Furthermore, some students prefer to keep everything with them because they either don’t trust the school lockers or would rather carry their belongings in their bookbags instead of traveling back and forth.

“I don’t use my locker because I forgot how to use a locker,” said Ivan Haro, a senior.

Some students don’t use their lockers because they don’t know how to open them or have forgotten how. This may be due to unfamiliarity with the locker codes or uncertainty about which direction to turn the lock.

“I don’t use my locker because I have no reason to put anything in it,” said Javian Santiago, a senior.

This suggests that some students see no purpose in using their locker, while others believe lockers can be useful for storing items. Students who do use them often keep backpacks, skateboards, or gym clothes inside.

“I use my locker because I take my skateboard to school, and I can’t—or don’t want to—carry it to each of my classes during the day,” said Juan Sanches, a senior.

This shows that lockers can be helpful since students don’t have to carry extra weight up and down the stairs, especially when their bags are already full.

As an incentive, this year, the school rewarded those students who used their lockers.  Through September, the school dropped YOU WON! cards into 20 random lackers per week.  Winning students excahnged the cards for a free ice cream in the student cafeteria.