Bourbon County High School; is a high school located in a small town where everyone knows everyone. While it does have a close-knit community, there are issues all students can put effort towards improving. At BCHS, 55% of students have a neutral experience and 11% have a negative experience. While 36% of students have a positive experience, there is work that still needs to be done. Every student or staff member has their own unique experience at our school. To improve our school and create a better environment for future students, current students need to be aware of issues within their school environment. We all need to help put effort into making BCHS a school where no matter who you are or what your background is you can have a great high school experience.
In the past few years, BCHS has taken steps never taken before. In 2017 a club called “Spectrum” was created. This club is a safe space where students who support or are a part of the LGBTQ+ community can gather. BCHS is one of the few schools in Central Kentucky that has a club supporting LGBTQ+ students. Though we have made progress, distasteful comments or actions still happen. One student who is a part of this community shared their experience at BCHS. The student shared a scenario that occurred only a couple of years ago, “There was one instance where I was treated differently due to my sexual orientation. It was the first day of sophomore year. I predicted it to be fair. I said for months before that, I was going get bullied just for liking someone of the same sex. I won’t name names, but a guy asked me if I would be interested in playing football. I didn’t say anything, I just shook my head. Without hesitation, he called me a slur and laughed with his friends. Immediately, that turned my view of the school around. Especially when I told someone and it appeared nothing was done about it.” These interactions not only hurt people but also set a morally wrong standard of how people who are different from you should be treated. Many students may struggle with finding out who they are, therefore treating everyone with respect and kindness can go further than you think. Though there have been negative experiences, this student has also had positive experiences. When asked, “Has there been welcoming people at BCHS?” the student responded, “I would say so! To my surprise, those welcoming people happened to be teachers. I have friends here that are welcoming, but a few of the teachers made an effort to go out of their way to make sure students feel welcomed and their classrooms LGBTQ+ safe.” BCHS has many welcoming students and teachers, but as a school, there is plenty of room for improvement in how we treat students who are a part of this community.
There are many students at BCHS from different backgrounds, but they all roam the same halls. So why would anyone be treated any differently? While treatment towards people of color has improved over the years, there are still those scenarios where students of color get treated differently. A student, who is a woman of color, shared her experience in an interview. When asked if being a woman of color has affected her experience at BCHS she stated, “In general it hasn’t. I haven’t specifically been a target for anything major as I typically keep to myself, but I have been a bystander while other people are harassed, usually verbally, or while people make racist remarks that they think nobody will hear or notice.” It is crucial to make sure our actions are respectful, even if you think no one will notice. As a famous British writer, C.S. Lewis once stated, “Integrity is doing the right thing, even when no one is watching.” Moreover, when the student was asked if she thought BCHS was a safe space for students of color she answered, “It’s honestly difficult to say whether or not it’s safe. Discipline for this behavior has improved over the years, but it seems that those behaviors still appear. I’m not saying that administrators need to end racism because that is unrealistic and unfortunately probably impossible. However, I think there could be a few more things done to make students of color feel more welcome. Overall, is it inherently dangerous? No. Could it be a safer place for people of color and other minorities? Absolutely.” Times have changed and treatment towards minorities has improved, but there are still ways we can do better. Treating everyone with the same amount of respect should never be questioned at BCHS.
If anyone has had a lackluster experience, it’s teachers. Due to BCHS being public, most teachers are underappreciated. In general, students lack basic respect for them. As the number of teachers across the country decreases rapidly, students do nothing to stop it. When students don’t give the necessary respect to teachers, teaching becomes increasingly difficult. As a student at BCHS, I have witnessed countless students talk over or completely ignore a teacher’s lesson and consequently fail the assignments. This is a vicious cycle that needs to be broken, not only for BCHS but for all high schools.
Bourbon County High School has the potential to be something great. Establishing basic respect for others can make a huge difference in our school environment. As a school, students need to help carry on better habits so that present and future students can have a better high school experience.
