Doherty High School is constantly dealing with students not respecting our building, and lately, the vandalism has gotten out of hand. Our school staff is disappointed with the everyday calls about the boys’ bathrooms around the school. Each bathroom has already been closed once this semester, including the girls’ restrooms which have been affected by the vandalism in the boys’ room.
Bruce Moss, a custodian here at Doherty High School, says he gets a call almost every hour. “I’ve been here for 20+ years and I feel like these problems will never end,” says Moss.
Mike Filliponi, Doherty Building Manager said,” This year has been tough, but last year was even worse.”
Last year, Doherty’s vandalism was worse than ever when a TikTok trend started influencing students. Bathrooms were constantly closed because things were being stolen. Paper towel dispensers, soap dispensers, and sometimes even big things like stall doors. It was costing the school money, and no matter how many times students were asked to stop, they didn’t. Eventually, the situation died down.
In an interview with Assistant Principal Hillary Heinton, she said she was feeling, “Annoyed, but also disappointed that one, kids would do that anywhere, but especially at their own high school.” Dr. Murphy adds that she personally feels frustrated by the situation. “It’s frustrating because it’s unfair to other students.”
The longest repair according to Ms. Heinton is flooding. The toilets flood due to people flushing things that can’t be flushed and since the plumbing is all connected, it causes problems for the girls’ restrooms too.
It doesn’t stop there, though. The boys are ripping off the wall dividers, destroying the dispensers, pulling the sinks off the walls, etc. Again, it’s costing the school a lot of money and some of the administrators are agreeing that this year might be the worst year as far as vandalism goes.
There are a lot of complaints from the students saying that it isn’t right to close the bathrooms, but the administration says, “We only close the bathrooms if necessary.” Meaning that the bathroom is in such a bad condition, that it cannot be used whatsoever.
JaKobi Cockerham, a junior here at Doherty says, “It gets frustrating knowing that people aren’t mature enough to just use the bathroom and go back to class.”
Senior Avery Kastl adds, “I don’t go into the bathroom, but I have heard it’s upsetting that they’re closed down all the time.”
It leaves the students who weren’t involved in these incidents wondering when it will all stop. The administration is wondering the same. How many bathrooms have to be closed and how many things have to be taken away before students get it?
The administration has already taken action in punishments for students involved. They will continue to take anonymous tips through Safe2Tell and listen to witnesses so we can stop the destruction of the bathrooms.
Nikki Britton • Apr 20, 2024 at 12:28 pm
What a great article! This situation sounds like a major problem, and this piece really details it well. The student and staff comments that are included really do a good job of sharing what the issues are, and how upsetting it is to everyone. How sad that some high school age students are so immature, and uncaring about other people they are affecting with their vandalism. Well done!