The first thing juniors and seniors often ask themselves in the morning before first period: “Where should I park?” This question determines when students should wake up, how early they have to leave their house and whether or not they will be late to first period.

For those who refuse to get to school at 7:30 a.m. to find a parking spot along Munro or Rockland, or in Senior Lot, have no fear. There is a plethora of open spots that many students either do not know about or are afraid to park in. In truth, there is no risk in parking in one of MHS’s three faculty lots. Whether it’s Junior Lot, the staff lot by PACE, or the left half of senior lot, I can always count on arriving at school at 8:05 a.m., parking, and getting to class on time.

First, I want to clear up the false notion that the police give tickets to non-faculty members who park in the staff lots. As a student who has been parking in all three lots since the beginning of my junior year, I have never once gotten a ticket; the police just don’t have time to check each car for either an MHS staff or visitor’s pass.

Avid staff parker Craig Schiff ’11 believes that “staff is the best place to park in the entire school. I’m never late, I always have somewhere to park after lunch and whether it’s raining or snowing, my walk to the school is always short and timely. I never have to get the walk of shame,” he said, referring to the .2 mile walk from the deep spots lurking on Munro to the school.

Just park in staff, and don’t get caught. Once you become a seasoned staff parker, you can identify the cars of the campus supervisors who try to snipe the amateur students as they try their luck in staff.

For example, once you park and shut off your car, look around. If you see a car coming with the faculty parking sticker, then wait until it passes before you get out. Also, be sure to park away from Carmen, because she quickly learns students’ names and runs their license plates. “I’m there rain or shine,” Carmen said. “No student can pass me and expect to park without getting yelled at. By the way, tell your friend Brian Schiff [she means Craig] that I’m after him!”

In other words, know where she patrols and grab one of the 40 spots before her post. By contract, all teachers must be at school by 8:00 a.m., after which there are always plenty of open spots.

There have been several suggestions as to how to divide extra spots in the staff lots: for example, a merit-based parking system by grades. But none has proven appealing enough to the students and faculty to produce any sort of change. For now, just be careful and good luck in your parking endeavors.