Letter from the editors
Dear readers of The Lowell,
With the start of the new year, people often think about new beginnings. We at The Lowell began our spring semester with around 20 new members, resulting in one of the biggest staffs we’ve ever had. And with the start of this new semester, we decided to finally pursue an article that has been in the works for years: an in-depth look at drug use at Lowell. Underage illicit drug use has been an issue for a long time, but as each successive false fire alarm attests to, it’s a growing problem at Lowell. In our cover story, “Obtainable and addictive,” we’ve tackled it by interviewing users, admin, and experts, as well as conducting a lengthy survey of 32 randomly selected registries. What we discovered was a need for more resources.
In this issue, we also focus on several other groups who need more support from our community, including Lowell’s growing English Learner population and Black and Latinx students who face disproportionately low representation on campus. While some of these issues are attributed to district or school policies, there are also ways that parents, students, and other community members can help these groups. We hope these articles help open up conversations on how we can better support Lowell students.
Editors-in-Chief,
Chloe Chon, Kelcie Lee, and Marlena Rohde
Chloe is a senior, but still doesn’t really feel like one. One thing she’s proud of are her spotify playlists, which include every genre imaginable (yes, even country). Outside of the journ room, she loves taking long drives, writing, and thrifting.
Kelcie is a senior at Lowell who can be found in the journ room working, drinking coffee, and listening to music. Her older brother once mentioned that there are only three guarantees in life: death, taxes, and Kelcie not waking up to her alarms. She also happens to have a paradoxical relationship with chicken… go figure.
Marlena is a senior at Lowell. When she isn't at school she's probably at the lab, watching a movie, or sitting on the sidewalk listening to music (usually Björk).
