The putrid odor of urine, filth and human waste lingers throughout the school corridors while students narrowly avoid the repugnant desolation that is the school restroom. Inside, lie students vaping, fighting and tampering with equipment.

Undoubtedly, the school’s bathrooms are atrocious. Students often express their discomfort, and frankly, there’s no reason not to. Studies by Unilever, otherwise known as “The School Toilet Report,” showed that one in three students claim to experience serious negative physical, emotional and mental health concerns because of their refusal to use school facilities.

This significantly impacts the lives of students, staff and faculty throughout American schools, so we must take the necessary precautions to keep our community safe.

The custodial staff is arguably one of the most pivotal positions in a school system since they ensure sanitization within an educational environment. With key duties such as cleaning classrooms, waxing floors and scouring contaminants, it should come to no surprise that while an important job, it’s often considered a miserable one.

Custodians often report low wages, supply constraints and biohazardous conditions, such as those in school bathrooms. A study conducted through the Institute of Educational Studies reports that only 74% of vacancies have been filled within the custodial staff position which is low when compared to the nearly 86% of teaching staff vacancies filled.

School bathrooms and cleanliness are two words you’ve probably never heard put together positively. Often, school bathrooms constitute biohazardous conditions, with reports ranging between unpleasant odor, filthy equipment, and even bodily fluids spattered throughout.

According to a series of online surveys as documented by the National Library of Medicine, over 48% of participants claim that they experienced or will experience hazardous or unclean bathroom conditions. Additionally, reports of constipation and bullying were frequently documented.

This is a rampant issue throughout American school systems, but some methods of attacking it could be a significant increase in custodial wages, nicer bathroom equipment and toiletries or even a consistent sanitization schedule – all of which provide a better, safer and cleaner school environment.

While some may deny these proposals, it is important to notice that with a better school environment, we can have a more accomplished school system overall, but American school systems need assistance from their communities to further this change.

School bathrooms may be messy, but with enough dedication and perseverance, we can build upon our past mistakes and provide a better future for us and our future generations to come.