It’s passing period and you really have to pee. Your next class is in the upstairs 200 buildings and there’s no bathroom, but you can use the restroom on the ground floor before racing up to get to class on time. Oh wait, it’s closed. So are the 700s and 500s bathrooms. 

We have devious licks to thank for that. Even though it’s months past the origin of the TikTok trend that inspired students all over the country to trash their own school restrooms, all but two of the school restrooms remain closed due to ongoing theft and vandalism. 

“As soon as we try opening a restroom without supervision, something happens,” says Vice Principal Mrs. Delawder, “Vandalism, pretending to film students using the restroom, etc. We can’t use our entire campus supervisory staff to watch restrooms as they need to keep the rest of the campus safe.” 

Here at Castaic High School, there are 8 bathrooms for over 1,000 students. Currently, only the 400s building bathroom remains open at all times with staff supervision while the 500s bathroom is open during lunch and brunch only. This is due to the ongoing vandalism that occurs whenever more restrooms are open without supervision. 

“We have a few students acting like… I would say kindergartners, but that would be an insult to kindergartners,” says James Aguirre, Castaic High School’s Plant Manager who manages the team that repairs the bathrooms and keeps our campus clean. 

From the vandalism of the school restrooms and theft occurring on campus, to littering during break time, and more recently the inappropriate conduct in the Student Store, immature behavior is running rampant among the student body.

If students can’t show that they can handle the responsibilities of being a student, then privileges will continue to be taken away. These consequences, like the bathroom and Student Store closures, will only grow if behaviors on campus don’t radically change. 

“My suggestion is to quit wasting food, if you’re not going to eat it don’t get it,” says Aguirre, sharing his advice on acting appropriately around campus. “Place your trash in the trash cans and find a better way to vent your frustrations. We have all kinds of clubs and school programs, athletic teams you can try out for and fantastic counselors that are willing to sit down and talk.”

Aguirre is completely correct. Counselors are always available to help students with any personal or school-related issues they are facing while new sports seasons are beginning and certain coaches are still accepting those who are interested. Further, the Zen Den is now open on campus in room 212. The schedule is posted on the closed restroom doors for those interested. The Zen Den is intended for relaxation and wellness help. Utilizing these resources is the best way to help yourself. 

“[The restroom closures are] inconvenient and we would love to have all of the restrooms open but, unfortunately, some of our students are just not quite ready for that level of freedom just yet,” says Mrs. Delawder, “Hopefully soon.” 

Each coyote should be making a conscious effort to prove that we can handle having our bathrooms open and unsupervised. “These individuals need to show some pride in themselves and their school,” says Aguirre. “It’s a shame that just a few are ruining it for the rest of the student body.”

The bottom line is that we all want to have all of our restrooms back, so behavioral changes need to be made. Maybe you should think twice before deciding that a school restroom is really the place to partake in an out-of-date TikTok trend.