Bug infestations have been a problem at Bowie for many years, and there has yet to be a reliable solution to fix this problem. These rampant insects are impacting students, teachers, and many other people at school.

“The amount of crickets all over the building and in my classroom is unlike anything I’ve seen before,” social studies teacher Alejandro Garcia said. “Every morning there are always crickets around my door and inside the room.”

The bugs around the school are causing students to struggle to stay focused during class and is impacting their school life. Garica feels that students may become distracted if they are scared of bugs and they see one near them.

“I’ll just pick the cricket up and throw it out of my room,” Garcia said. “But it can be distracting to students who freak out when the crickets are next to them or jump on them.”

Sophomore Alessandra Ariza feels that the bugs can be distracting to teachers as well as students.

“The bugs around the school can be distracting to the teachers/staff and the students because of the frequent noise produced by them,” Ariza said.  

These bug infestations have caught people’s attention more recently but these bugs have been a problem at Bowie for more than just a couple years. Garcia, who went to Bowie when he was a high school student remembers an incident he had with bugs while at school.

“A centipede crawled out of an AC unit onto my arm back when I was a sophomore in downstairs A hall,” Garcia said. “I’ve seen rattlesnakes, mice, rats, wasps, and just about every insect imaginable around this campus.”

Although the bugs are a serious problem at Bowie, students believe there are many solutions that could enable a decrease in the amount of bugs and insects around the school. 

“I think what would help to fix the bug problem would be for more people to clean up after themselves,” Anderson said. “That would mean if you drop food, pick it up or if you see trash or wrappers on the ground and have enough time, pick those up as well.”