The Student News Site of Monta Vista High School

El Estoque

The Student News Site of Monta Vista High School

El Estoque

The Student News Site of Monta Vista High School

El Estoque

After Hours

After Hours

Even after the final bell rings, MVHS remains a center for activities

The bell rings. It’s 3:05 p.m. on a Wednesday afternoon and everybody is ready to go home after a long, hard day of school. But after a while, as the school empties out, somewhere upstairs in the C building, two students, senior Amanda Hsu and senior Yevgeniya Tarasova, sit in the hallway. They crowd around a laptop, to finish the new “Glee” episode they hadn’t finished watching during brunch.


In fact every day, as most of the students finish their classes and leave the school, there is still a buzz of activity happening on campus. Unknown to the rest of the population of MVHS, the campus “after hours” can be a quiet haven to focus or bond or an exciting world of drama—and fun.


Martial Arts Club members practice their moves in the rally court on Oct. 8. The Martial Arts Club is just one of the many groups that uses the campus after hours. Photo by Erin Chiu.Near the basketball courts, four students push and shove to get a ball in a hoop. The boys wave their arms in each other’s faces and scream nonsense words to distract each other. Once they settle down, junior Blair Li comments on his use of MVHS campus after school ends.


 “Usually, we hit the weight room, but we’re going to try out for varsity basketball, so we’re practicing here, “ Li said.  “Afterward, you know, after the exercise, we like to get a study session in between.”


Back in the main office, as the administrative staff packs up to go home near the end of their shift, they make a last minute announcement at 3:57.


“Please excuse the interruption, but we will be testing the fire alarms momentarily. Note that this is just a test.”
And six minutes later, as the fire alarm rings, the boys and girls water polo teams, practicing in the pool—who may have been too consumed with their sport to hear the previous announcement— start splashing insanely and screaming “fire” at the tops of their voices.


Even after sports teams finish their practices, there are still staff members working diligently all around campus. Custodian Noe Higuera spends his time from 3:30 p.m. all the way until midnight, cleaning up after our messes. He carefully goes through every classroom and takes care of anything that’s been left behind.


“Well, I don’t know how they manage it, but the kids sometimes forget their backpacks. And the weight is, like, 20 pounds!” said Higuera.


Even science teacher Jenna Smith sits in her classroom with a computer playing some soft music and an open box of Wheat Thins.


Smith likes being at school to collaborate with her colleagues. “[On campus] I get to collaborate and bounce ideas off my colleagues,” said Smith. “Being in a school setting is conducive to school work. Plus, kids can stop by and get help. My door’s open.”


For teachers, working at school lets them work more productively. In fact, social studies teacher Viviana Montoya-Hernandez says that working on campus gets rid of all the distractions that slow her down elsewhere.


“But what’s surprising is that there [are] always people at school,” said Montoya-Hernandez. “Whether it’s 6 [p.m.] at night or 2 [p.m.] on a Saturday afternoon, there are always people on campus. Always.”

More to Discover