(June 10, 2011) — High school is a time for rites of passage—turning “sweet” sixteen, becoming an upperclassman, getting a driver’s license, and finally pulling on that senior sweatshirt. Another considerably prominent rite of passage for students at Clark tends to be the change of seating associated with each grade level. There exists at Clark an unspoken tradition of sorts—what senior Julian Lometillo describes as “an unwritten rule.” As freshmen, students hang out on the first level, anywhere from the red brick wall to the area around the auditeria. In their sophomore year, they stick it out, rain or shine, in the wide, open spaces of the amphitheater. They move up each year until, as juniors, they move to secure a spot under the green Panther Pit tarps. It is usually then that they have the boldness to claim one of the tables as their own. “It’s a matter of confidence and grade levels sticking together,” Lometillo says. “Incoming freshmen stay downstairs because they still feel awkward about the campus and don’t venture away from their spots. But each successive year, they get bolder.” Students like senior Ron Glandian find the whole idea of migration overrated. Glandian has grown comfortable with a single table and area, and hasn’t felt the need to move to any other hangout spot in his four years at Clark. “I don’t think sitting at different places signifies anything special. [My table] is just a table, no different than any other table,” Glandian says. Senior Alexa Lubrin agrees with Glandian in some aspects, but welcomes the idea of moving. “It’s a change, and change is good,” she says. Like many other students at Clark, Lubrin made the journey upstream with friends over the course of her four years at Clark. However, she does find that one doesn’t necessarily have to follow this trend. “It doesn’t really matter where you sit as long as you’re comfortable,” she says. According to Lubrin, as long as a student is surrounded by good friends, all is well. This popular move to “designated” areas can represent a bond that students share with friends and classmates. It is something they experience and revel in together, regardless of classes or work schedules. As they arrive at the top of the amphitheater—or settle into their usual hangout spots—they begin to realize how far they’ve come and find that the culmination of their final year in high school is not too far away.