Driving into the parking lot in the morning, a subtle divide can be felt. While seniors park in the coveted front spots of the “senior lot,” juniors choose to skirt around the front two rows closest to the school.

Although there are no rules specifically outlining the hierarchy of the parking lot, juniors and sophomores have felt this divide.

“All the juniors and seniors know where their class parks and, of course, the seniors get the best spots,” said junior Eric Ringsrud.

The two front rows of the parking lot are designated for the seniors while the “junior lot” consists of the back two rows. The lot alongside the football field is designated the “sophomore lot.”

Senior Lisa Porter has experienced first hand the effects of the hierarchy when she parked in the wrong lot several times during her junior year.
“I parked in the senior lot on accident and someone put my windshield wipers up every day,” she said.

Now as a senior, she feels the hierarchy is still a significant part of the school.

“It’s nice to be able to park wherever I want,” she said. “I like it a lot better now that it’s in my favor.”

Second semester brings sophomore drivers and, consequently, more cars and even more rules.

“Second semester will be interesting with all the sophomores moving in,” said Ringsrud. ”I might end up moving spots because that area will probably become flooded with new sophomore drivers, and I don’t want me or my car in the danger zone.”

With all the rearranging in spots, Porter is still adamant about the hierarchy.

“If a junior parked in the senior spots, it would be pretty annoying,” Porter said. “But for the most part, people stay where they’re supposed to so its not usually a problem.”

However, some don’t feel that the hierarchy is a valid tradition. Junior Raiza de Vera says that the lack of consequence in parking in the senior lot has led her to ignore it.

“The worst [thing] that's ever happened was one of the seniors advised me not to park [in the senior lot] because of the vandalism,” she said.

The legitimacy of whether the parking hierarchy exists or not is clearly split, even within each grade.

“I don’t think there needs to be anything official; everyone learns pretty quick,” said Ringsrud.

De Vera knows that there is an unwritten rule about the senior parking spaces, but since there is no real rule, she chooses to ignore it.

“I understand it's a respect thing, but if I arrive early enough to school and there is an available spot near the school, I will take it,” said de Vera.