Students hit the beach for senior skip day

High school students nearing graduation are participating in senior skip day throughout the region. This group from Paris, Ont. was setting up at Port Stanley on June 2, 2023. (Sean Irvine/CTV News London)

It has become a right of passage for some teenagers — Senior skip day.

Across southwestern Ontario students have ditched high school classes for a trip to the beach. The majority are on the verge of graduating.

“It’s about having fun and not going to class,” stated Grade 12 student Emma Fletcher, from the beach in Port Stanley.

“We work hard, so it good to get a break from school”, her friend Kyra Flewelling added.

Senior skip day or beach day, existed before the advent of social media, but it has since ballooned into a significant event.

Local school boards do not endorse, condone or sanction it. Students who do not go to school are marked absent.

Police are also monitoring skip day at popular beach fronts including Grand Bend and Port Dover.

At Port Stanley, a smaller crowd of students were enjoying beach activities Friday.

Pedro Muniz and his friends drove 90 km from Paris, Ont.

“Turkey Point was going to be busier so we just wanted to come here, get some waves and have a calm time,” he told CTV News.

As the beach began to fill after the noon hour, Muniz expressed he sees little harm in graduating students taking a day off to have fun.

“It’s just a day all the people want to get off of school. Go to the beach and have a good time.”