By Blueprint Online News Group
// After widespread participation in the unsanctioned “Senior Ditch Day,” an annual tradition both at Acalanes and across the country, administration decided to punish the 196 seniors that skipped school on Friday, May 26. The threat of cancelling the Senior Picnic, an annual event planned for months, has been leveled against the senior classes in past years, but this is the first time that punitive sanctions have actually been put into effect.
After almost a week of deliberation, Acalanes Principal Travis Bell sent an email to all senior parents on the morning of June 1 detailing the plans for the Senior Picnic on Friday, June 2.
All seniors attended the Senior Picnic directly following the End of the Year Rally on Friday. However, those who skipped school on Senior Ditch Day attended only one period of the picnic. Those seniors returned to their sixth and seventh period classes, while the seniors that attended school regularly on Senior Ditch Day were allowed to remain at the event for the remainder of the day.
In the email, Bell described the intended purpose of the punishment and the ensuing message it would send to future classes.
“My hope is that it will give the right message to the students by knowing that each choice they make as they proceed to higher education and/or the workforce comes with its own set of consequences be they positive or negative,” Bell wrote.
Despite Bell’s wish that the punishment will deter future classes from partaking in Senior Ditch Day, many future seniors do not believe that the sanctions will have any effect.
Before Thursday morning, there was a lot of speculation about what the punishment would be, if there was to be any at all. Many teachers, including Social Studies teacher Joe Schottland and Environmental Sciences teacher Jada Paniagua, wanted widespread punishment for the senior class. Both of these teachers declined to be interviewed.
This story will be updated in the coming days