Silver Chips: Losing Lockers Why lockers are a waste of space

As the number of students at Blair is expected to surpass 3,000 students next year and the overcrowding problem is anticipated to grow throughout Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), it is clear that the schools must clear the space that lockers take up and use it in a more productive manner...

...Other schools have chosen to tear out lockers and instead use the space to foster a more welcoming learning environment. At Lakeville North High School, its 500 lockers were knocked down so that the school could make room for new cyber cafes. On the other hand, Ericia Turner, the principal of Rocky River High, has considered replacing the rows of zip tied lockers lining the halls of the school with display cases to highlight student achievements. 

In the past, MCPS has been reluctant to get rid of the lockers. In 2016, the administration chose to include lockers at the newly renovated Wheaton High School. However, other school districts have begun to completely remove lockers from their school designs. For instance, Wayzata Public Schools (WPS) has chosen to not include lockers in their renovation of Wayzata High School, which required an addition to hold the expanding student body, similar to the situation that Blair currently finds itself in. 

Costing between $50 and $100 dollars to install, this money would be better spent on expanding instructional space. Continuing to install lockers in MCPS is an antiquated practice, one that should have stopped at the same time when Silly Bandz and Heelys were no longer cool.

http://silverchips.mbhs.edu/story/13728