“We did a lot of other stuff…”
Friday is senior ditch day, an event that is rather self explanatory but here are the details anyway: Senior ditch day is a tradition in American and Canadian high schools where members of a senior class skip a day of school. The designated day to skip classes is often scheduled close to a special event, such as prom or graduation.
It’s a day school officials don’t exactly encourage, but it’s become such a senior year rite of passage that many teachers will just shrug their shoulders and go along with the tradition.
Why do seniors do it? Well, it’s optional. Nobody has to do it and there are plenty of students who choose not to participate or can’t. But for those who indulge in senior ditch day, it’s an opportunity for celebrating, relaxing and having fun before facing the world outside of high school as an adult.
It begs the question: What exactly goes on during senior ditch day? Some of Del Oro’s teachers and staff gave us a sneak peek into what their lives were like when they were high school seniors during the dark ages.
Admittedly, multiple teachers were leery of revealing the, uh, 2.5 GPA activities they engaged in during their senior ditch day and, when asked about what they did, provided variations of the following responses: “No comment” or “I can’t tell you.”
“My senior ditch day is still to this day a day that I cannot mention.” said Desmond Ramey, Activities Director and head cheer coach.
Some teachers claimed to be model teenagers by saying they didn’t participate in senior ditch day – we’re looking at you, Lynna Ha, Juan Constantino, and Agustin Mata.
Then there’s Science teacher and Outdoor Adventure club advisor Richard Ruiz – commonly referred to by several of his students as “Mr. Rizz.” What did he do for senior ditch day? Simple: He said he stayed home, played video games and ate chips.
“Nothing too exciting,” he said. “Just a chill day off.”
Speaking of chill days, Mr. Ruiz wasn’t the only one who had a nice, relaxing one.
History and Psychology teacher Jana Sweet said she drove to Tehachapi with some friends to play in the snow.
“I want it for the record though that my parents knew I was going,” Sweet said. “I didn’t ditch; I had my parents’ permission. Honesty is the best policy, and I had good grades.”
Turns out a chill senior ditch day doesn’t need to actually include ditching.
“First thing in the morning, I left with my friends and we went to the beach,” said Physical Education teacher and cross country coach Hulises Gonzalez. “Once we got there, I remember getting hungry and going to get food. We got breakfast. We were there for a while, just hanging out.”
Gonzalez said he and friends did other things, like play basketball.
“We just had a fun day, and made a really fun day out of it,” he said. “We got back at maybe around five, so it was a fun day.”
When pressed to reveal if he did anything else, Gonzalez grinned and responded in a sly and suggestive tone: “We did a lot of other stuff.”
From staying home and playing video games to snow trips and a fun day at the beach, senior ditch day was significant for some of Del Oro’s teachers and staff, that much is sure.
The question remains for the Class of 2025: What are you going to do on senior ditch day? Hopefully, it’s memorable (and appropriate) enough to share in the future.