Opinion by Sam White

It’s the beginning of the school year which means homework, waking up early, and everyone’s favorite — high school drama. With football season underway, there is bound to be talk of “senior girls” and the student section. The student body needs to become more united, because seniority has divided us.

For those of you who live under a rock, I will explain to you the term “senior girl.” Every year a new senior class makes it to their final year of torture and they get to “rule the school.” Also with being a senior, all of the females receive the label of “senior girl”. This is typically a derogatory term given to those seniors who think they are entitled because they are females in the 12th grade. This attitude results in people being bossy, mean, and negative. Senior boys can also succumb to similar issues. As a senior girl myself, I believe that this term is unfairly applied to everyone, but I can also admit that there is a little bit of truth in the stereotype. This truth is what I’m apologizing for.

In the student section, seniors sit in the front, and juniors behind them, and so on and so forth. This is an expectation that people have every single year, and there is nothing wrong with it. However, this expectation begins to cause issues because underclassmen are told to move back. I know that seniority is a sort of “right of passage” for high schoolers, but we often take it to lengths where it becomes silly and irrational.

Every person in the student section should be expected to cheer their heart out and to have a good time. At the Solon game two weeks ago, I felt that underclassmen were being made to feel unwelcome in the student section. The purpose of the student section is to promote school spirit, so I personally didn’t want to back that up. I made the decision to move back with the freshmen and I am happy with that decision. Sitting with the freshmen for an entire game was not only a really good time, but it also helped me understand their perspective better.

Upperclassmen tend to get mad at underclassmen for not cheering, but the issue isn’t that simple. No one communicates to the freshmen and sophomores what is going on, so it becomes hard for them to participate. It’s also difficult because from the back row, it seems like no one is cheering, and no freshman wants to stick out. We need to bridge the gap between the upper and the underclassmen by COMMUNICATING. I know, what a crazy concept. Seniors need to stop getting angry at freshmen for not cheering and do something about it instead. This could be as simple as walking up the ten stairs to let them know what cheer we’re doing next, or designating specific people to pass the message back every time. I do not mean that we need to mix up our precious seating arrangement, but I do mean that we need to be understanding and cooperative.

Senior girls are not only notorious for being mean and bossy, but being very negative too. I, being a senior girl myself, do believe that this is an unfair generalization. I know that people are upset because they want the same privileges that the seniors have always had, but change needs to start somewhere. I promise that if you commit yourself to having fun in the student section, no matter where your spot is, you can have a good time. I’m sure we have all experienced that moment when we are trying to live a little and be happy, but someone around us complains a bunch and it ruins the mood. If you’re not going to try and have fun, I ask you to please keep your negativity to yourself, so everyone has the chance to enjoy their Friday night.

While the boys aren’t infamous for being negative like the girls are, they do tend to come off as very headstrong. This is a different issue than what the ladies have, but equally as important. Senior boys need to work on being accepting to make the student section and the whole high school a better place.

The student section doesn’t need to have drama. Dear Class of 2019, we can change the perception of all senior girls to come. “Senior girls” doesn’t have to be a derogatory term if we don’t want it to be. Sincerely, your fellow senior girl who wants to unite the grades instead of tearing them apart, and through that goal, change the perception of senior girls as a whole.