LIFESTYLE
Hawkeye
MAY 2022 | 9
Tradition triumphs at Terrace By Kaylee Miyamoto HAWKEYE STAFF
Across the country, a tradition has taken place among high school seniors called “Senior Assassin,” a game in which participants compete for a pool of money. This year’s seniors are partaking in this tradition, but with a few differences from previous years. The competition is a senior-only game in which individuals or duos are anonymously assigned another duo or individual to “eliminate” in each round, which lasts a week. The elimination varies school by school, sometimes using markers or water guns, but most commonly using Nerf guns. To enter, seniors must pay a sum which is added to the winner pool, growing bigger the more people compete. At MTHS, the competition has been organized for several years. Unaffiliated with the school, it is arranged by students who help set up and moderate the game by assigning targets, enforcing rules and making sure the competition runs smoothly. This year, senior Lindsey Ho has taken on the challenge of coordinating the game, which she started in April. Ho has made adjustments to
the rules, which differ from other years, to balance the health regulations with the fun of the game. Some of the additions to the game in effect for this year’s competition include purge hours, safety items and buy-backs. Safety items, which make the player immune to being shot, are reassigned each round, and cannot be removed by other players. This immunity lasts the entire week until the purge hours, where for about a day, any player still in can eliminate their target even if a safety item is present. In some rounds, buy-backs allow an eliminated player to get back into the game by paying a certain amount of money. Additional rules in place for this year’s competition state that no “assassinations” can be made on school grounds, any ESD campuses or events, places of worship, or while working in a workplace. To confirm an “assassination,” a video must be taken and sent to this year’s Senior Assassin Instagram account (@terraceseniorassassin2022). Historically, the weapon of choice at MTHS has been a Nerf gun, and 2022 is no different. This year’s weapon must be a single shot Nerf gun with rubber-tipped bullets and no modifications. To help players find their targets, all players have Snapchat’s “Snap Maps’’ enabled to show their recent locations at any time. If a player’s Snap Map is not on during an “assassination,” it does not count. This year’s game, which started on April 18, has had 3 rounds, and as of May 15, 37 “assassinations” have taken place, with some players eliminated for not eliminating their target. Locations of this year’s “assassinations” have included a local Costco, a gym and many of the players’ homes. Safety items are chosen by the player from a select list with the goal to
make the player stand out in some way. Choices include bright wigs, the combination of a tutu, sunglasses, and a toilet plunger, or even just having a current freshman within six feet of the player. After the first round, buybacks opened for $8 per person to add to the prize pool of money that the last player standing will win. With the wig as an immunity item, concern about safety arose within the first week, when some players forced the wigs off of others. “The rule of being able to take off another player’s wig is now illegal because people are doing it in a violent manner,” Ho later posted in a statement online. “You cannot physically restrict another player to eliminate them, as it is illegal to physically restrict a person against their will.” Being the only coordinator has proven difficult, with Ho having to deal with situations such as the wig incident, as well as answering any questions that might have been unclear in the rules. The class of 2021 seniors had their own game, although it was much smaller compared to years past due to hybrid learning and disconnection in the community during COVID-19. Despite this, it marked the return to the community since before the pandemic. After six rounds over six weeks, the winners were Luke Jones and Micael Hollenbeck, who had to cope with very similar rules coordinated by Julie Porras and Tiffany Vuong. COVID-19 guidelines were incorporated into the game rules and disclaimers for the players as safety and health precautions. The pandemic and shift into quarantine eradicated any option of a senior assassin game for 2020 graduates, an unfortunate but necessary call. Over the course of the pandemic, it has become clear how important positive high school memories are, and traditions such as senior assassin only add to them. This year may be the first “normal” competition in years, and while waiting to see who wins, it’s important to keep in mind the people behind the scenes who made it possible. H
NICO FRANCOIS | HAWKEYE
Bathroom reconfiguration a step toward gender-inclusivity By Kaylee Miyamoto HAWKEYE STAFF
MTHS will soon have its first and so far only gender-neutral bathrooms, but the exact time they’ll be put in place is still not known. This is one step the school and district are taking to be more inclusive of queer-gendered students, and to introduce something new to the school community. Many schools across the nation have been introducing gender-neutral bathrooms to be more inclusive, providing a safer and more comfortable space. Gender-neutral bathrooms can be used by any student regardless of gender, and those who do not identify with the binary genders can have their own safe space. This comes as efforts to make safer and more inclusive environments has become a focus at Terrace. “We want to do some small physical changes to the bathroom. We want to communicate it out to folks adequately, so my hope is as soon as possible,” Principal Greg Schellenberg said about when the bathrooms
For Spencer, the prospect would be ready. “It is a pretty of a gender-neutral bathroom Many students were solid idea and means that they can go in unaware of the future of a a good step between classes throughout gender-neutral bathroom, forward for many the day without worry. but those in the LGBTQ+ LGBT+ students at “My first thoughts are that I community have been waitTerrace.” can finally go in between classing for this day for a long Atticus Sumabat FRESHMAN es, but until that day comes, time. I usually don’t go during the “It is a pretty solid idea, passing period,” Spencer said. and a good step forward However, for every queer student, this for many LGBT+ students at Terrace. As experience of comfort and feeling of safety in a trans man, I’d feel way safer in a neutral the community varies. (gender) bathroom,” freshman Atticus “I don’t feel comfortable being in a bathSumabat said. room with cisgender guys, and from experiFor many transgender students, using ence I know they’re not comfortable with me, either of the two gendered bathrooms which makes gendered bathrooms a whole doesn’t feel right or comfortable. Some stulot scarier for me,” Sumabat said. dents don’t use the bathrooms at all during For Sumabat, the effort is taken beyond passing periods or during school hours. “For those in between or outside of the just student use of the bathroom, but also binary, it feels uncomfortable, not because staff putting the effort in to make sure things of others in there, too, but also because it go well. doesn’t match how they feel in terms of their “I think as long as the staff put in the extra gender,” freshman Barley Spencer said. effort to make these places safe, it’ll work out
well in the end. It’s something we all need to get used to so things like this in society can be more common and accessible,” he said. For years, LGBTQ+ students have requested gender-neutral bathrooms, and according to Schellenberg, the Edmonds School District hopes to make this step collectively to help more students feel safe in their schools. “I know a couple of high schools are on the same page and trying to get in. Eventually, I know the district is interested in providing that space,” Schellenberg said. “Hopefully bringing the same push forward in having a more comfortable space beyond just the high school, and maybe even lower-grade schools.” The date for the transition is unknown. However, the plan is that the new bathrooms will replace the two bathrooms inside the music hallway. Higher stall walls will be added in order to make the bathrooms as comfortable for students as possible, and MTHS administrators are dedicated to ensuring students feel safe. H
