As the winter weather in Naperville remains consistently below freezing, there are still some students walking around the halls, as well as to and from school, in short sleeve shirts and/or shorts. The idea of carrying around a coat all day burdens so many students that they would rather face these frigid temperatures under-dressed. 

Many teachers, including special education teacher Rachel Romero, have noticed this trend among Naperville North students, and express their concern.

“It makes me nervous to see students walking to school without their coats on when it’s -25 windchill. It’s not safe, but I understand why students do it,” Romero said. 

 The issue of students not wearing coats to school is not new.  Students have consistently ditched their coats in the cold, year after year.

Many Naperville North students, regardless of what they wear to school, agree that bringing a coat is inconvenient. Freshman Jake Kedziora, who not only comes to school without a coat, but wears shorts some days in the winter, gave his reasoning.

“I don’t own a jacket right now because I grew out of my last one, and I really don’t enjoy carrying it around all day,” Kedziora explained. 

While the inconvenience is enough for Kedziora to decide not to wear a coat at all , not all students fully agree. Eva Pelecky, an NNHS junior, talked about how she manages her coat when it’s too cold to not bring one. 

“If you have to wear a coat on cold days, you need to wear a lighter coat because it’s easier to carry,” Pelecky said.

Carrying around coats would be made easier if students had a place to store them during the day – which brings up the topic of lockers. The locker situation at Naperville North was made more complicated this year, when the school decided not to assign lockers to students. Students could request them, but otherwise would not have one. 

Even though students have the option of a locker for coats, many don’t seem to think that they would make their lives easier. Kayla Garcia, a junior, explained why. 

“If lockers are far away from my first or last classes, it’s hard to get to them on time. But at the same time, it’s hard to carry a coat all day,” Garcia said.

At this point in the winter, everyone should know the trade-offs and what works best for them when it comes to bringing a coat to school. But in this situation, there really is no clear answer. 

“At the end of the day, you guys will probably do whatever you want to do. I don’t know that there is a solution,” Romero said.