Imagine: you are a senior, and when you head to the commons for community time (CT), to your horror, the farm table is already filled with sophomores and juniors. You are shamefully ousted to the library, which is always mayhem during CT (even more than the commons), thinking why don’t seniors have their own designated area?

The farm table in the commons needs to become reserved for seniors only. Currently, it is an unwritten rule that needs to become a written one. 

Last year, as juniors, the class of 2023 completely respected the seniors and their right to the table. 

However, this year has been a different story. Juniors and underclassmen have routinely taken over the farm table in the commons during CT, leaving the seniors to scavenge for places to work on college applications and homework, like parking spots in the lot.

While our school is great for so many reasons, there is one glaring hole: a true senior space. Via social media, I’ve seen high schools across the country honor their seniors by giving them devoted spaces. A senior ‘lounge’ is a common example of this. 

A room with couches and maybe even a ping pong table reserved just for the 12th grade. Another interesting bonus I’ve heard about is reserving parking spots for the seniors, and I’ve even seen schools on Tik Tok where seniors come in before the school year and paint their spots with creative designs and inside jokes. 

According to Associate Director of College Counseling Britten Nelson, the seniors at UPrep actually did have a space at one moment in time. 

“Our old office was down near the commons, where the fish bowl classroom is now. In the spring, the seniors turned it into their unofficial hangout space. It had doors that could be locked/shut, a projector, and tables and chairs. Seniors naturally flocked to that space and spent a lot of time there. We sure do miss it,” Nelson said. 

If there was a senior space at one point, why isn’t there one now? While we may not have our own parking spots, or a senior lounge, at the very least, the farm table in the commons should be for seniors only during CT and other free time. With all of us going our separate ways within the next year, it is necessary for us to have a devoted space to talk and connect with one another, work on college applications together and much more.