Boarding School Thefts

Theft is a real thing on boarding school campuses and it has to be stopped. It’s a feeling of insecurity and a breaking of trust.  It’s why the recent backpack thefts at Choate have been so devastating. Those thefts did more than disturb a handful of students­–they shook the very foundations of trust on campus. In order for trust among students to be regained, the administration must deal the backpack thief and remove him or her from campus.

Choate isn’t the only boarding school to face problems like these. Three years ago, Lawrenceville was facing very a serious problem with theft on campus. Many boarders found that they could no longer leave their doors unlocked because they didn't trust that people wouldn't take anything from them. Lawrenceville students saw trust on campus eroded because their classmates would take things without asking.

Even in American literature, thefts at fictional boarding schools have shown to be a problem. For instance, in J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield finds that he cannot trust his classmates at Pencey Prep because of how much they steal. He remarks, “Pencey was full of crooks. Quite a few guys came from these wealthy families, but it was full of crooks anyway. The more expensive a school is, the more crooks it has. I'm not kidding” (Salinger 7).

Clearly, theft on boarding school campuses is a major issue that has to be dealt. At Choate, dealing with the issue first involves ridding the campus of the backpack thief–but it won’t end there. The culture at Choate needs to change so that students know that stealing is unacceptable. Only then, will true trust be restored to campus.