There are 800 lockers at Robinson. Out of those, less than half are available for rent. And only 14% of the school’s lockers are used.
This is Robinson’s locker predicament: hundreds of lockers aren’t rented, and hundreds more aren’t even able to be rented. This can possibly be because–as several students have claimed–they “don’t have time between classes,” that the location of the locker is “far away,” and they are “so small.” Lockers are such a valuable resource. Students can unload their heavy books, binders, and other materials. It can hold items for an after-school sport or activity. Our school has hundreds (many were installed with the new buildings) but more than 84% aren’t used.
The only available lockers are located within the downstairs hallways of the B and C buildings. Students don’t have the option to select a locker in the World Languages building or the science and history halls. Those hundreds of lockers are left fallow with either a lock (that doesn’t belong to a student) or with a zip tie attached to it. The lack of availability is another reason why students aren’t renting lockers.
Additionally, on top of the 86%, many of the rented lockers aren’t even active. I know multiple people that have a locker but decided after a use or two that they didn’t want it, emphasizing the effect of little time and location availability.
I wanted to rent a locker in the science hall last year because it was right next to my homeroom which I entered two times a day. However, when I found out the only lockers for rental were the ones in the B and C buildings, I reluctantly spent five dollars on a locker for the year. Spoiler alert: I rarely used it. My reasons for the lack of usage are closely aligned with the few listed previously. I had no time to reach it without leaving class or being late, it wasn’t in a desirable location (I had no classes on that floor of the C building) and I couldn’t fit much into it.
Maybe some time in the future Robinson’s lockers will fulfill their intended purpose and all locations (or at least more) will be used. But for now, they’re just a pointless addition to our campus.
