Say Goodbye to the Senior Lounge?!
In all my years at TABC, throughout all the changes the school has undergone, one thing has always stayed the same: the senior lounge.
According to Mr. Poleyeff, the senior lounge was created 15 years ago in 2003, and has remained a staple for seniors ever since. Well, that may all change for the 2018 - 2019 school year, since there are plans to get rid of it.
After we returned from Pesach break, rumors started to emerge that the senior lounge might become a thing of the past. Rabbi Yablok has met with contractors with plans to build something else in its place.
“I believe there will be no senior lounge next year as a makerspace (engineering lab) will be in its place,” says Mr. Polyeoff.
I’m sorry! But a makerspace? Didn’t TABC already spend our tuition money on a “physics lab” that is used solely for the purpose of engineering or for anyone who wishes to build their own project?! If the administration sat down with the student to actually talk about what their plans were for the school, that we the students are attending, they would understand how we feel. Trying to impress prospective parents with a “makerspace,” isn't going to be much help, when you are making the current students attending the school angry and upset.
“Plans for the senior lounge are up in the air,” says Rabbi Yablok. “It will come down to whether we can trust that it will be used responsibly. I am concerned that it has become a place to do things that are not in line with the mission of the school.”
Just because other people have chosen to disrespect the school and the lounge with inappropriate behavior, based only on rumors, and may do things that are not “in line with the mission of the school,” doesn’t give the school the right to pre-judge the incoming senior class.
If the administration feels so strongly about this, they should have shut down the lounge for the rest of the year for the current seniors, not punish the class of 2019 for the possible misbehavior of the class of 2018.
Enough on what the administration plans. :et’s see how the upcoming seniors feel about this decision.
Matan Rockowitz, a rising senior, says, “Something that the students have looked forward to during our years at TABC should not be taken away from us because of past senior questionable decisions.”
Further, most students don’t even know what a maker space is. Rising senior Raphi Press questions, “what is a makerspace?”
I think this situation has escalated people haven’t even thought of the reason the senior lounge is significant to the seniors. For three years at TABC, students in the class of 2019, have seen seniors go in and out of the senior lounge, having a great time - hanging out, watching movies, and just relaxing. The general student lounge, where students are mostly separate and doing their own thing, can’t even compete with the senior lounge. The seniors cherish their own personal lounge where there are no annoying freshman and they can finally relax during the school day.
The possible removal of the senior is a serious issue and I think the administration needs to take a step back and truly review their plans.
