As a student, the best times during the school year are vacations! You get to relax, sleep, cut off from daily homework or have some fun outside. Sometimes you are stuck with vacation homework and often try to cram it in order to finish before the break. Maybe you think of your teacher and how they’re probably grading school work. Hmm… your teacher… what could they be doing during vacation?

Some teachers across the nation are not always relaxing or having fun during vacation. Kind of sad, right? While you’re enjoying your time off, some teachers may be working an extra job just to buy supplies for their classrooms. Amira Abdakhallaq, an alegbra teacher at John D. O’Bryant, usually shops at Dollar Tree or Walmart for school supplies. Her budget used to be $200, though now it’s reduced to $100.

According to a Department of Education survey, 94% of American public school teachers reported paying for school supplies out of their own pocket in the 2014-15 school year. Those teachers spent an average of $479. Reports also show that teachers of younger students such as in daycare, preschool or kindergarten have to pay more than teachers of older students do, because of things like diapers and toys.

And that’s not just it. Broken school supplies affect teachers too, even schools. For instance, broken computers. Though most school computers are funded, according to The Save Project, the cost estimate of one computer is about $200, and that doesn’t include other things like chargers. So imagine the cost to repair multiple of them!

Danielle Traniello, a physical education teacher at John D. O’Bryant, explained that the birdies students use are a consumable, meaning that they are easily ruined and need to be replaced often. And a combination of badminton rackets and pickle balls cost $240! In the context of school supplies, she states that physical education supplies are usually down the chain due to the demand of gym supplies and equipment, yet they can get ruined easily.

Some may think, Why can’t the school pay for the supplies? According to school districts like Boston Public Schools, the districts have made “research-backed investments” on things like “…teacher salaries, maintaining our teachers’ salaries so that they are the highest paid professionals in Massachusetts and among the highest paid across the country.” They also state, “We look at the expected number of students who will attend the school next year and the needs of those students — for instance if they are in a special education classroom — and allocate dollars accordingly.” We can assume from this that though school districts like BPS don’t directly pay for school supplies, they intend to pay teachers enough to afford those school supplies. Based on this, Massachusetts teachers are paid at least enough to provide school supplies for their classes.

Now, I’m not saying you need to feel compassion for your teacher, though they do deserve it. You may not like a teacher, or see them always in a bad mood, but the best way to help them out is to donate supplies. You don’t have to spend money for new supplies, but you can gather unused items such as crayons, markers or pencils in your house. This way, you’re not only helping the teacher, or your classmates, but you’re helping yourself have a better learning experience at school as well. 

“As I looked in the mirror, my mother placed her hands on my shoulders with disgust filled eyes,” student Dani Adams recalled. “She sighed before saying, ‘We will just have to fix your face later,’ then left the bathroom. 

Adams stood there crying, telling herself that she wasn’t enough. She thought it was true because her own mother didn’t think she was good enough, then who would?

It hurt me to hear this story not only because one of the most beautiful, sweet, caring young ladies I had ever met had such low self-esteem, but also because the woman who told her she “wasn’t good enough” was also the one she called “mom.” That made my blood boil. People like my classmate’s mother have set beauty standards for the younger generations that force us to create and uphold a certain image that is “perfect.” Anything less than perfect is not accepted. So what is “perfect?” 

Perfect is something or someone having all the required/desirable qualities, elements, or characteristics. This definition can change based on the country you’re in, and the mindsets of the people surrounding you. Here in America, the definition of “perfect” has more to do with looks than anything else. Throughout history, a majority of the people that live here fancy skinny women, or buff and muscular men that have money. Of course, they also have to be white or at least light-skinned. Their faces have to look a certain way, no double chins allowed, only straight white teeth, and women can’t wear anything above a size six. 

I spoke with Denise Tench, a woman from my church, about the beauty standards and trends that were relevant when she was in her teens. “Every female was trying all types of diets, waist trainers, fasting and other weight-loss methods to get the glass Coke bottle or hourglass figure,” she explained.

We aren't taught to love the jelly rolls or different pigmentations of the skin. We aren't exposed to the beauty of melanin, all of the different eye colors, the many imperfections of the face that make us beautiful. 

We are taught things like “being fat is bad because it causes so many health problems,” but that's not completely true. I myself am fat, and I have no major health issues besides being fat. Why does the fact that I'm a little bit bigger than other people have to be a problem? It doesn't have to be. Appearances are nothing compared to what's on the inside. And yeah, it's a cliche, but your beauty truly does shine from within. 

This is partially our fault for enforcing these ridiculous standards on others constantly. Not only are some of us still trying to squeeze into those old jeans that we know are way too tight, but we’re also just starting to tell others how the way that they look doesn't matter. Sadly, it was too late for our generation. We have already been exposed to the pressures of society, and the idea of making ourselves as “perfect” as possible, just so we can make it through their day without much judgment.

“Everyone is beautiful, period,” said Vivian Snow, a 16-year-old student at Dearborn STEM Academy. “There is no ‘beautiful in your own way,’ nor is there any such thing as ‘perfect.’” Snow was labeled the “ugly” child at school and bullied on a daily basis, but that didn't stop her from keeping a smile on her face. While she accepted a boyfriend who only liked her for her body when she was younger, her perspective has changed. 

“I was only twelve when I started dating him,” Snow said. “I was young and dumb, but I truly thought that that was love. Now whenever I think about that relationship, I think of all of the people like me who were in a toxic relationship because they were afraid that nobody else would love them. Us ‘ugly’ people don't get much of a choice anyway, or at least that's what people make you think.”

Snow is right, us “ugly” people are made to think that we have to stick with anyone who shows any interest in us, even if they're literally one of the worst people on the planet. That's why so many of us try our best to become something that everyone wants, but not what you want for yourself.

We as the people of the world — and specifically the younger generations, since the future is in our hands — should start to end this cycle of overrated, and fairly boring beauty standards. It's time for a change, don't you think? Let us make 2020 the first year of full acceptance of all people, regardless of what they look like. Let's try to agree that everyone is beautiful (and if you want to add the “in their own way” thing, then do that) and just start being real to ourselves.

Singer-turned-reality star Ray-J got into an online spat with his pregnant wife Princess Love in late November last year. The couple was in Las Vegas for an event when Ray-J allegedly had an affair in a separate hotel room. Love began posting passive-aggressive messages about her husband on her Instagram story prompting Ray-J to go on Instagram live and tell millions of people that he was still in Las Vegas, trying to prove his innocence and get people off his back. 

Both fans and the press were questioning him about what happened between him and his wife. If he said anything to those people, his words could have been twisted, which is something social media likes to do. Then he would have to explain himself to his 2.2 million followers on Instagram when frankly the only person he should have to explain his actions to is his wife, not his followers. This is a problem we could all avoid if we stopped blowing things out of proportion. The toxicity when it comes to public relationships is so real, and very few see the strain that social media puts on relationships. 

Some couples put themselves into this situation by putting everything about their relationship online, inviting vulgar accusations. I’m not saying they deserve this but they could avoid some of it by keeping things more private. Even couples that do keep things private face accusations and get dragged into scandals. Unfortunately, not a single couple on Instagram is safe from the way we publicize online spats and make them worse.

YouTube makeup artist and entrepreneur Jeffree Star and his partner Nathan Schwandt split in January after being together for five years. Star stopped posting on Instagram and Twitter for three days until Jan. 11. when he posted a video on YouTube titled “We broke up.” In the video, he talks about his and Schwandt’s relationship and the breakup. He explains that Schwandt never wanted to be famous, but he would appear in videos because Star asked him to and because he believed in everything that Star was doing.

“Me and Nathan are friends,” he said. “I feel like I need to say that because I think the internet spirals and creates so many false stories.” In this specific line, he addresses how social media makes up false stories about relationships during sensitive times. 

The problem is before he put out this video, fans were speculating if he and Schwandt really did break up because Star took the phrase “Nathan’s wifey” out of his Twitter and Instagram bio. False stories and speculation about a couple’s status can ruin trust and communication, while also discouraging them from dating again in fear of having to go through a huge scandal. 

Most people don’t realize that the couple controls what we see and we don't always get to see what happens behind the scenes. There could be problems that are legitimately affecting the relationship and people on social media have no idea, leading them to say or do things that only make it worse.

“I know that sometimes social media can be the source of arguments being bigger than need to be,” said Jorge Murilleo, a 15-year-old student at the Dearborn STEM Academy. Social media and its users have a tendency to blow things out of proportion by twisting words, making up rumors and false claims. 

I believe that relationships on social media should be less targeted when it comes to drama and scandals. I’m not saying that couples shouldn’t be on social media, I follow a variety of couple accounts myself. All I’m saying is that social media shouldn’t break up couples or blow arguments out of proportion. Having that much vulnerability on a big site with people who don't exactly share your views or don't know the value of “if you don't have something nice to say don't say anything” can damage any relationship no matter the strength and established trust. 

We make relationships work for us by establishing trust and understanding that every relationship is going to have problems or arguments and a lot of times social media makes these things worse. We need to let people be and let them handle their business so online couples can be two happy peas in a pod.