by Audrey Farris ‘25

After many parents came out with concerns about student drug use in the bathrooms, MCPS implemented new steps to ensure bathrooms are being used only for their intended purpose. MCPS explained that restrooms will be checked regularly and monitored throughout the day and that during unstructured periods of time, like before school and during lunch, schools are permitted to limit access to designated restrooms. Staff will also be increasing the frequency of checks inside restrooms throughout the school day. In Sherwood, it’s evident that these steps have already been implemented.

During lunch periods, the majority of restrooms are locked, making it difficult for students to find the few that aren’t. It can be challenging to find an empty stall in between class periods, meaning more times than not you will need to wait in a line for a chance get an open stall. In classes, teachers are seemingly apprehensive to let students leave. This leaves unstructured periods like lunch as the only chance to use the restroom, which is now be- ing impeded by this policy. While the sentiment is there, MCPS is only creating more problems with these steps that will negatively impact the school community as a whole.