You might have noticed this Friday, April 28th, the halls of Academic Magnet may seem a little quieter, less lively, and definitely quieter. A foreshadowing of the near future, the seniors are nowhere to be found, except a select few of our most elite, dedicated students – or those already weighed down by impending seat time. Situated right before prom, this is a perfect day to take off and spend some time with your friends, especially before the school year ends. Plus, the added element of danger from the attendance office makes it feel more memorable than just the average weekend.  If you’re unsure about how to use this day to its fullest, or just curious in general, then you’re in the right place. 

What is senior skip day?

Every year, on the Friday before prom, the majority of the seniors collectively decide to skip school. In replacement, they opt to spend time with their friends, usually participating in fun summer activities. It isn’t school sanctioned in any way, but the teachers all know about it and many will accommodate for the low class numbers by changing their coursework, which I think is super nice. Nevertheless, it’s not required that you participate in senior skip day, so select seniors can still be spotted in empty classrooms. 

What do you do on senior skip day?

Firstly, you don’t come to school. This is the integral part of senior skip day. Some common activities I’ve seen are going to the beach, which I will be doing, going on a friend’s boat, or swimming off a dock or in a pool. I saw some water-skiing happening, which looked really fun. 

The most popular activities are water-oriented, which unfortunately might change this year. It’s a 50% chance of thunderstorms on Friday, but you might be able to be careful and dodge the rain. If it does rain, or you don’t want to do any of the activities above, it could be super fun to go to a friend’s house and just hang out, or get lunch reservations somewhere fun. If you’re a girl, having a spa-day with all your friends before prom would be really relaxing. Boys can also do this if they want. I’ve also seen people plan elaborate picnics, but with the chance of rain, I’d definitely recommend doing this in somebody’s backyard so everything can be moved inside quickly. 

I think the most important part of senior-skip day is making the most of your lack of school, especially because you’re paying with an unexcused absence. I definitely recommend putting a little bit more effort than usual into planning a fun activity to share with your friends.

What not to do:

This year, a widely publicized senior skip day caused a shooting by the IOP pier, which harmed several people. If you didn’t hear of this when it happened, then I recommend this article: NBC News: IOP Shooting to fill yourself in. A lot of the students that participated in it were from other schools on the outskirts of Charleston, and even before the shooting, people weren’t acting appropriately for the beach. Further, a poster had been made publicizing this day, which likely drew more people to the pier who otherwise wouldn’t have attended. It’s extremely sad that people were injured in this senseless attack, and it’s disturbing to see it happen both in our community and with people our age. 

This felt important to mention because it was so recent, so I want to stress the importance of staying safe on senior skip day. It is important to mention that, as far as I know, Friday is only senior skip day for Academic Magnet, so you’re unlikely to encounter a large unruly crowd. 

Overall, the best advice I can give for senior skip day is to have fun, and if you’re not participating, then maybe this will have helped you get excited and come up with ideas for when you’re a senior!