Every morning, a familiar motto is sounded in each classroom of PMHS. The morning announcements always conclude with a defining phrase, which has become the crux of the Pelham high school experience: “Your Voice Matters.” This phrase has been adopted by the administration to affect positive change in the school, emphasizing the importance of students’ opinions. Yet, in an era of incredible student activism and sweeping reform, just how much do our voices matter?

At the national level, students’ opinions matter more than ever. Following the shooting at Marjory Stoneman High School in Parkland, Florida, high schoolers who were victims of the atrocity stood up and made sure their voices were heard. Students, not adults, organized the March For Our Lives campaign and were able to take advantage of social media to create a massive walk-out from schools across the country, and large protests nationwide. From these teens’ efforts came gun reform at the national and state level, notably increased roadblocks to obtaining a firearm in Florida, and new security measures in schools throughout the country.

The students of Parkland are not alone in this progressiveness. On December 12, 2018, Greta Thunberg, a 15-year-old girl, addressed a United Nations Plenary in Poland, criticizing them for the lack of action they’ve taken to address climate change. She gave a powerful speech to a room full of diplomats. In her speech, Thunberg said, “We have not come here to beg world leaders to care. You have ignored us in the past, and you will ignore us again. We have run out of excuses, and we are running out of time. We have come here to let you know that change is coming, whether you like it or not.” The voices of students may have been disregarded in the past but times have changed. Across the world, students’ voices are being heard more than ever; this is an age of teen-driven reform.

However, does this hold true at PMHS? Pelicans are constantly encouraged to share their opinions; they are told they really matter in school. But is this said just to placate us, or are our suggestions being acted upon? While it may seem that our voices hold value, students’ experiences have proven otherwise.

Students that attend PMHS are required to follow the student dress code. Board Policy 7312 of the student handbook states that one must, “Recognize that extremely brief or revealing garments are not appropriate.” According to the same board policy, a student’s apparel can prove to create a distracting learning environment. The policy states, “In order to create an atmosphere conducive to teaching and learning, all students are expected to….dress appropriately for school and school functions.” Girls that attend Pelham Memorial High School have experienced the repercussions of the dress code. During the early fall and late spring, PMHS gets very hot due to the fact that there isn’t air conditioning. Many have done the familiar walk, leaving the main office in a baggy Pelham t-shirt, after being forced to change for violating the code.

Furthermore, last year, the administration banned shirt-cutting for the school-wide Olympics, deeming this practice inappropriate. Students are no longer granted the freedom to cut the sleeves off of their Olympics shirts or decoratively cut them even though many have voiced their disappointment with this decision. It seems counter-intuitive to enforce this rule. The Supreme Court decision in Tinker v. Des Moines stated that in order for one’s dress to be ruled inappropriate, it would need to violate the expression of others or disrupt the school day. As a concept, Olympics inherently disrupts the school day, and shirt cutting just furthers students’ abilities to have fun and express themselves at this annual event. It is one thing to enforce the dress code on those who cut their shirts to the extremes. But if students were to cut their shirts within the confines of the dress code, would it really do any harm? Pelicans have voiced these concerns, yet they’ve been shut down.

Additionally, many students were saddened by the abrupt end to the traditional calling of nicknames at Pep Rally this past fall. Even after deliberation with multiple student bodies, it was decided that nicknames would no longer be a part of these spirited events during the year. Again, there are two sides to the issue. On the one hand, varsity captains were late to submit their nickname sheets for approval. When staff didn’t have enough time to approve them for appropriateness, they had no choice but to get rid of them altogether. This is understandable. But to revoke nicknames for good because of one slip up? This seems unreasonable and unfair to a student body who has clearly voiced their disagreement with this issue. If varsity captains can get their nicknames to staff on time, there is no reason why they shouldn’t be allowed to be used during the Pep Rally.

In an age where teenage students are speaking up and being heard more than ever, in many scenarios students at PMHS are having their voices ignored. When it comes to the issues that mean the most to the student body, our voices may matter — but are they being heard?