The beginning of each school year is filled with many first impressions. One school wide impression being made this year is the seemingly abnormal number of injured students.  The injuries vary in all things such as cause, type, gender, and severity, making it hard to find a trend in the issue.

For example, junior football player Ben Thrasher is entering the new year hurt.

“I tore my meniscus four months ago playing soccer, it hasn’t healed and it still bothers me in football.”

Quite simply more LHS students like Thrasher are walking the hallways on crutches and in casts.

Students aren’t the only ones taking notice of the number of hurt kids, adults are too.

“Over the last couple of years, there has been more kids on crutches than normal,” said Vice Principal John Parke, “I don’t know the exact number, but it sure seems like there have been a lot.”

LHS does not track injuries, but they do keep a tally of how many elevator key cards are in circulation at one time. The cards are given to student who can’t navigate stairs due to injury or some other circumstance, and you need them to access the school’s elevators.

Head Secretary Corey Fivecoat is in charge of distributing and keeping track of the cards.

“I don’t know that it’s necessarily changed a lot in the number of injuries, the difference is that in the first two days I gave out all seven elevator cards,” said Fivecoat, “and when I give them out there’s a really small chance that I’m going to get them back.”

Even though the access cards are completely gone, don’t worry as a student if you find yourself needing to use an elevator. According to Fivecoat, all teachers have cards which can be used for the elevators, and they would be more than happy to open them for you.