Francis Lewis High School implemented a participatory budgeting program for the first time in the school’s history, allocating $3,769 for student-led improvements. Students voted to use the funds to address longstanding issues in the school bathrooms. However, despite the upgrades, many students report continued dissatisfaction, citing broken stall locks, persistent odors, and unsanitary conditions.
“There’s not enough resources inside the bathroom itself, and honestly, I feel like they really need to work on their stalls,” sophomore Mariem Abdelfatah said. “There isn’t that much privacy in the stalls, as well as cleaning, because it’s very dirty, and there’s bad odors.”
The school purchased new stall locks, mirrors, and air puffs designed to reduce odors. According to Ms. McGuirk, the Assistant Principal of the Social Studies Department, these improvements cost approximately $1,800 and were primarily made in the girls’ and boys’ strip bathrooms.
Despite these efforts, students like Abdelfatah remain frustrated.
“To be honest, no, because the bathrooms are just the same as they were last year, maybe even worse,” she stated. “There’s nothing upgraded in the bathrooms, and even if there was, it wasn’t noticeable enough to help kids feel comfortable using them.”
Principal Dr. Marmor explained that unexpected challenges during the renovation process contributed to the perception that little progress was made.
“Some of the things the bathrooms needed required electrical work, which was far beyond the scope of the budget,” Dr. Marmor said. “They decided to split the money, and while some of the bathroom renovations were completed, the rest went to support badminton.”
One major complication was the installation of air filters, which turned out to be unfeasible due to electrical limitations.
“So we wanted to buy these really big air filter systems,” Ms. McGuirk explained. “They were very expensive and would have taken up most of the budget. The issue we ran into was the voltage. If we installed those filters, they would’ve popped the circuit every single day.”
In response to continued complaints, the Social Studies Department conducted further research to understand students’ concerns.
“We did hundreds of interviews and surveys to learn why the students were upset and what changes they wanted,” Ms. McGuirk said. “We tried our best to bring those things to reality. We’re not stopping here, and we’ve applied for the money again.”
Ms. McGuirk emphasized the importance of engaging students through programs like Civics for All to ensure their voices are heard. One such initiative, Project Soapbox, involved the freshman class giving speeches on community issues.
“I like to think that we’re still exploring these projects and thinking about how we can make them the most impactful and meaningful for students,” McGuirk said. “Student voice is an integral part of the values of our school community.”
The school hopes that by reapplying for funding and improving its participatory budgeting program, more students will become involved and see their concerns addressed.
“I personally don’t like stepping into the bathroom because of how dirty I feel like it is in there,” Abdelfatah said. “I feel like it’s not getting cleaned enough, or people are just not being responsible enough.”
