A student scrambling over the fence / Contributed Photo
Whether the shiny metal gleams in the morning sun or is covered in raindrops, the new fence around the track and field greets me each morning, and each morning I wonder, why did they put a fence in?
I have asked many people around the school what they think of the fence, and the general consensus seems to be that the fence is good. The soccer players say it helps keep balls from rolling down the hill, which is true, except for when the balls are kicked over the fence and become even more difficult to get because you have to go all the way around to the gate to retrieve them.
Other people I have talked with say it looks nice and fancy, but question what purpose it really has. It is too short to keep deer off the field, and it is too short to keep people from going over it if the gates are locked. One student even said, “it is not that tall. I could jump it.” Every morning, I truly hope that the gates will not be locked because then my usual route of walking to school will be lengthened by me having to go all the way around the track, or, as stated before, I could hop just the fence.
This brings up another potential purpose, which is one of school security. If the fence is supposed to be a security measure, it is not adequate and probably will not do much in the scheme of things.
While it has some nice aspects and is fairly helpful, I do think the fence is rather unnecessary. It is not the most useful thing our school has invested in, but I get that it was part of the plan for the track. Well, whatever people say about it, it is here to stay, so we must adapt with our rapidly changing school.