Purses and tote bags have been all the rage on the Carlsbad High campus this year. Prada and Coach purses, satchels and Lululemon crossbodies stand out the most across the student body. Backpacks are slowly starting to disappear on campus and are making way for more fashionable alternatives.
Since upperclassmen have the opportunity to have a free period in their schedule, they do not have to worry about bringing as many supplies as their underclassmen peers might. Pressley Stough, a student at CHS, believes that is why purses have taken over the student body.
“I think the use of purses spread because a lot of the seniors realized they didn’t need to carry that much stuff,” sophomore Pressley Stough said. “I noticed my brother last year started doing it because he didn’t need to bring that much stuff since he had a free period every day.”
However, sophomore Luke MacLellan believes the use of purses and tote bags started as a fashion statement. He talks about how other students thought backpacks were plain and bulky, so they switched to an easier and more appealing look.
“The girls on campus probably started it first, and then the guys didn’t want to carry around a backpack so they just started carrying their things around,” MacLellan said. “Eventually, everyone started doing it because they [thought] it [looked] better than wearing a backpack.”
With fewer supplies to bring to school, some students only require their Chromebooks since many teachers have switched to primarily online assignments. Students will even put pencils or highlighters in their pockets so they do not have to bring a bag to school.
“It makes sense if you don’t have to bring a lot of stuff for school and you carry it around, because it’s easier at that point,” MacLellan said. “But, [with purses], losing and dropping your belongings is a lot easier as well as your arms getting sore.”
Sophomore Averi Gonzales plays for the flag football and soccer teams for Carlsbad. She brings a separate bag to school with her purse to carry her sports gear whenever she has practice.
“Backpacks carry a lot of stuff, while purses don’t hold very much, but you can [still] carry a binder with it,” Gonzales said. “Although it hurts your wrists, you can set it down easily so it doesn’t really matter. They also accessorize and make your outfit cuter.”
No matter the bag or backpack, soreness is a possible consequence of the weight students have to carry around. However, Stough believes the hassles of backpacks are too overwhelming, including issues like hair getting stuck beneath the straps.
“I would say a purse is a lot easier to carry because you don’t have to worry about a ton of weight being on your back,” Stough said. “The more you put in your backpack the worse the back pain, so it’s just a never-ending cycle of pain from using backpacks.”
MacLellan believes that the possible consequences of holding your school supplies is not worth it. With backpacks, your belongings are in one secure place without having to think about losing them.
“If you drop your Chromebook and break it, you’ll have to pay for it so it’s just safer to use a backpack than carrying your stuff,” MacLellan said.
Stough runs in cross country, but unfortunately, there is no locker room or space to leave her running gear. She does not want to inconvenience her teachers by leaving her belongings in their classrooms, so she has to bring another bag to carry around along with her backpack.
“I have to use a backpack because my sport doesn’t have any locker rooms I can put my stuff in for practice after school, and [many] people can put a majority of their stuff like sports gear in their cars so they don’t have to haul it around at school,” Stough said. “It also looks cuter to carry a purse instead of a big heavy backpack.”
Fashion is changing on campus with the rise of purses and the disappearance of backpacks. Teachers not requiring physical materials, upperclassmen having free periods and the appealing look are what allowed purses to take the school by storm. Purses allow students on campus to express their personalities in many ways.
“With purses, I can express my personality through fashion, which I’m not able to with backpacks,” Gonzales said. “They give me more confidence and make me feel better about going to school.”
