The new policy changes did not come from nowhere. There were reasons for all of them, and those reasons were members of the student body.

Obviously, the majority of students followed the rules. However, there have been a handful of students who caused these changes, having spent years deteriorating the faith the staff had in the responsibility of the students.

The underlying issue with the policy changes is not the slight inconvenience to students. Rather, it’s the demonstration of a lack of trust toward students.

Adulthood is just around the corner for high school students. With everyone entering the real world within the next four years, they must be responsible enough to take care of themselves and, thus, should be entrusted with that responsibility now in order to prepare them.

However, we are being reverted back to the rules and treatment we were given during middle school.

The policy changes send a message that the student body is not trustworthy enough to be given certain privileges and opportunities, nor are they mature enough to follow rules and experience the consequences of their own actions.

Ultimately, the policy changes and their responses are not about lunch spaces, parking lots or phones in class. It is about the presumed maturity, or lack thereof, of the student body in the eyes of the administration.

In order for students to grow throughout their time at Blue Valley and beyond high school, they must be granted both privileges and responsibilities to teach them. For, that is what school is for — to teach. Not just math or science, but real-world lessons.