This school year, all lockers were assigned to students by the administration. It is the first time in three years that neither juniors nor sophomores have been able to choose their lockers.

According to Principal Stanley Teitel, the administration decided to do so in the spring of last year at the suggestion of Technology Coordinator Edward Wong, because the system would be easier and more equitable than one in which students choose lockers.

“We felt that [the old policy] was kind of unfair because some of you are away and don’t have access to a computer,” Teitel said. “It might have been three days before you finally checked your e-mail and realized, ‘I can pick a locker,’ but all that’s left is way down the corridor on the first floor.”

Prior to the 2007-2008 school year, the administration assigned all lockers. Starting in the summer of 2007, juniors were given the option to choose their lockers through the student tools section of the school Web site. The following two years, both sophomores and juniors were allowed to select lockers.

Some students were ambivalent about the new policy. “The positive aspect of it is the increased chances of getting to know new people, or people who you haven’t talked to as much before,” junior Sangmee Kim said. “However, the assigning can also prove to be inconvenient for some if they [...] have to go out of their way between classes in order to reach a locker all the way across the hallway.” 

Others feel it is best to allow students to choose the location of their locker. “I am on the varsity volleyball team and other sports teams, so I was really hoping to select a locker near the third floor gym,” junior Cecelia Shao said. “The administration cannot possibly be aware of everyone’s extracurricular schedule and needs.”