School Wide Vandalism

By Talon Reporter: Scott Kellett

Every public establishment can expect to run into some form of vandalism eventually. Public sidewalks are littered with gum and libraries often have torn or trashed books. Here at school we see damage in many forms as well as different policies on handling it. Almost every desk in the school has some sort of etching on it varying from enthusiastic names to hot-headed gang signs. Teachers must often deal with the destruction individually. Psychology teacher Ms. Miller claimed, “I have to stay after school every day to clean off the writing on the desks…(because the custodians do not have enough time to vacuum and wash each desk).” Matt Kennedy spent much of his first summer as a teacher at HRV cleaning his classroom. He said that the desks he inherited from the old economics teacher were mutilated beyond belief and that at parent teacher night he was simply “embarrassed.” Kennedy soon received new desks for the classroom and worked to further improve the room by patching holes in the walls and even repainting the room.

Bathroom stalls are also written and drawn on frequently and after being damaged, are commonly closed for up to a week for repairs. Recently, one individual even defaced the School sign marking the school zone located on the road approaching the school from Hood River. The graffiti remained on pavement for almost a full week before it was faded and painted over. Coincidentally, The Hood River News recently reported that a local 17 year old was arrested for tagging (spray painting) over 20 properties and vehicles. It is currently unknown if the two incidents are related.