# Principal Connection / What Does Your Restroom Say About Your School?  ## Metadata - Author: [[ASCD]] - Full Title: Principal Connection / What Does Your Restroom Say About Your School? - Category: #articles - Document Tags: [[edd]] - Summary: School restrooms often reflect a lack of care and can be unsafe spaces for students. During a meeting, administrators agreed that improving restroom conditions could positively influence school culture and student behavior. Many ideas were suggested, including adding student artwork and installing energy-efficient fixtures to make restrooms more inviting. - URL: https://ascd.org/el/articles/what-does-your-restroom-say-about-your-school ## Highlights ###### ID 847602843 > each restroom had rusted pipes, walls with peeling paint, and doors to toilet stalls that were unhinged or would not lock. Some had cracked mirrors. Restroom maintenance appeared to be low on the priority list. ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01jk7f4fbzesm6j1f24yd6qjhb)) - Note: I'll never forget when my assistant principal Dr. Courtney Orr decided to tackle the girls' bathroom. She decorated it, made it look pretty, put air fresheners in there, and went above and beyond to make something special. The school was nearly 40 years old, and this bathroom makeover had a powerful effect on the students. The boys even asked for a makeover for them as well. ###### ID 847607554 > I said that my school had posters on the walls in our restrooms and that the adults and students use the same restrooms. ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01jk7ff0ymfd26hw8hwn48fekj)) - Note: The idea of adults and students using the same restroom is a rarely used tool to keep the restrooms in good shape. While there are some legitimate concerns about some students not wanting to use the restroom if they know a teacher could walk in, there's also some value to knowing that a teacher might walk in and therefore you might make better choices as a student. ###### ID 847605734 > "Can we use this space to help students learn about conservation?" asked another teacher. "What if we installed energy-conserving facilities and monitored their impact for our kids to see?" She suggested energy-efficient LED lighting, air hand dryers, and water-conserving sinks and toilets. ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01jk7f98wz3a8vn9a3yr8162vn)) - Note: I wonder how much monitoring of the bathroom usage would be visible through monitoring. Most of the schools I was in had water bottle filling stations that showed how many water bottles had been saved that small feature. Something similar for the bathrooms would be interesting. Trees saved because of air blowers instead of paper towels (not to mention how much cleaner it is without paper towels).