Imagine being excited to have a spot in the senior lot. You think to yourself, I hope I get a spot right by the front doors of the school. However, you learn that you no longer will get an assigned spot, each spot will be first come first serve. 

The school year before, students could park in the same place every day. However, now that this has been changed, you do not have your own spot, and most usually end up with the spot all the way in the back of the parking lot. LFHS students seem to be irritated and frustrated by this change, however some feel that it is beneficial. 

The change from assigned parking spots to first come first serve parking took place last school year after students often parked in their incorrect spots.

“When students had assigned parking spots, occasionally they would park in the wrong spots and this would create a domino effect of people parking in the wrong spot. The students would then report it to the deans’ office and it would take a big chunk of time to investigate,” Dean Frank Lesniak said. “The switch to first come first serve parking eliminates this problem.”

Seniors who park in the lot no longer have personal parking spots. Now, they have to hope they get to school early enough to find a spot close to the front doors.

However, this new policy was seen as “inconvenient” and “annoying” according to 2023 alumnus Rachel Brown.

“There were so many times last school year when I would come back from going out to lunch and there would be no spots in the parking lot due to people coming in and parking during the day even when they didn’t have a pass,” Brown said.  “I would often be late to class trying to find a spot.”

Brown also explained that when she was a freshman, her brother had an assigned parking spot in the senior parking lot, and it was “so much more convenient.”

“What I don’t like about senior parking being first come first serve is that if I am not only running late to school, I then have to park far away from the doors and have to circle around the parking lot until I find a spot,” senior Ellery Newman said. “One time I came late to school and the senior parking lot was completely full and I ended up having to park in visitor parking even though I paid for a spot.” 

Without assigned spots this allows students who did not pay for a spot the opportunity to park in the lot as it is easy to take any of the spots available. Seniors who may come to school late come to find there is no space left as students without passes took their parking spots.

Newman also explained that this same experience has happened to “many of [her] classmates”, and they receive unexcused tardies because they couldn’t find parking spots that they paid for. 

Although many students believe this change to be bothersome, others believe it to be beneficial and better than before.

“I like it because if you get there ten minutes early there are so many spots open and you can get a good parking spot close to the doors,” senior Maddie VanNuys said. “It’s also nice because on block days a lot of seniors have study hall first period and don’t have to go in early, so usually there are a lot of good parking spots open in the morning.”

Although the change was to prevent students from parking in their incorrect spots, students find it to be much less convenient and seemingly more difficult than before. However, students also believe it to be helpful towards them, if they get to school early enough they can easily find a spot close to the front doors.