Written by: Paul Hotchkiss |

“Our school is too strict.”

“Why can’t we wear hats in class?”

“I feel like I’m in prison!”

Sound familiar? It should.  Some of these lines are tossed around the hallways of this school as if they were pieces of spare paper, like nothing. But the reality is this school, believe it or not, is a hotbed of freedom. How? Because we have the ability to express ourselves everyday. We are able to listen to music in almost every class, and if that isn’t enough, we get to use our cellphones. You would be shocked at how many schools in this state don’t even let you dress how you want let alone listen to music and play on phones. Maybe it’s time that we are thankful for all of these fantastic freedoms that Morgan provides us every day.

Although we may not like it, rules are a necessity for any form of government, whether it be a country, a state, a school or even a household. It would be absolute anarchy without them.

While we are not a country, we still have our leader who is in charge of keeping us all in line. For The Morgan School that man is Assistant Principal Mr.  Webb. Mr. Webb had much to share about the rules at Morgan: “Sometimes our students may be frustrated with the rules that we instate, but they have to be in place or else it would be a free for all!” Some students have also been complaining about the trusty passports that they have been asked to take with them whenever they leave the classroom. Mr. Webb refers to this issue as “a constant battle”. He then added, “I want them to be used by every student, and although some students have disagreed with this idea, more students have used the passport this year than the end of last year.” Webb also says “They are a good idea and a way to further keep order in the school.” He hopes the use of the passports will increase over this school year. However a principal’s point of view is usually never the same as a students point of view. When Chad Davenport was asked about some of the regulations of this school, he said “I think the front door policy is a little much, it doesn’t make sense.” There are a lot of students who share the same feelings on this subject but rules are rules… Right?

As a transfer student  from a private school, I can certainly say that this school shows tremendous leniency in terms of rules. Students walk around this school with bandanas, beanies, hats, everything… But at Xavier, I could not even enter the front door with such things. I also find it funny when students complain about not being able to use their phones in the hallways; try having to shut your phone off when you get to school and keeping it in your locker. These rules which would seem catastrophic to a student at this school are just small little regulations that other schools instate. The bottom line is, despite our feelings towards them, rules are what we need. They are structure, law and life for teens. Without these rules I feel that the school would be in upheaval. We should stop complaining about them, since from what we’ve heard from our teachers they are nothing but helpful and fair. Start accepting the rules as a necessary part of our education because they are never going to go away.