Courtesy of Victoria Lin
Alumnus Jonny Luo jumps with joy while hanging out with friends at Crissy Field in San Francisco.
Senior Ditch Day is a tradition that has frequently divided school officials and students who are oh so close to walking across the graduation stage.
On a designated day the majority of the graduating class choose to go to places like the beaches in Santa Cruz or San Francisco. Seniors view it as their right, while school officials frown on it and urge parents to not excuse the absences since doing so is dishonest. In senior-heavy classes, few or no students show up.
Though this year’s prom was much earlier, on April 5, the date for Senior Ditch Day has been still set for sometime in late May. Seniors learn about the details through social media accounts and their peers.
Seniors have been warned that they will receive a “C” on their attendance record, or a cut. Still, administrators learn of the event’s date “through the grapevines,” said principal Greg Louie. Each year he sends out a warning message to parents and students beforehand.
A common practice among parents is to call in their children as “sick” on Ditch Day to avoid the cut designation on their child’s attendance records. However, according to Louie, this is actually an academic integrity violation. It overburdens the attendance office and creates an obstacle for those who legitimately have a medical issue they need the school to know about.
Math teacher Lisa Ginestet-Araki did not participate in the tradition when she attended Saratoga High in the early 2000s. Although she said she too suffered from senioritis, recalling that she even considered not playing softball in her senior year, her studies remained her priority.
“If students are choosing to [ditch], make sure they know what the consequences are and that they’re willing to accept that,” said Ginestet-Araki.
Since most AP classes have relatively light loads after the exams in early May, many seniors who take these classes do not find it necessary to stay on campus. Yet, some teachers have purposely placed due dates for big projects or quizzes on Ditch Day.
Class of ‘24 alumni Victoria Lin and Jonny Luo drove to San Francisco and took advantage of the day to complete their AP Lang Happiness Project. They explored Coit Tower, the Palace of Fine Arts, Ferry Building and Ghirardelli Square.
Meanwhile, Class of ‘24 alumnus Sam Bai chose to spend his time reconnecting with nature, taking a morning hike at Quarry Park with his friends.
“I decided to participate in [Senior Ditch Day] because it was just something everyone did,” Bai said. “The classes that had seniors in it didn’t do anything that day, so even if you went to school, you would just sit there doing homework or something else, and most teachers didn’t teach that day.”
Class of ‘24 alumna Lynn Dai spent her time at a pool billiard place in Sunnyvale. She remembers not really feeling worried about the mark on her attendance record as she was aware a majority of her peers were accepting the official cut too.
For most seniors, Ditch Day is an opportunity to cherish their last weeks of high school with their friends. In some cases, they might even discover a new interest or build invaluable memories. But for attendance reasons and concerns over liability issues, not to mention a wasted day for certain classes, school officials will never support the unauthorized day of fun and frivolity that is sure to continue well into the future.
