Does having a car make students feel like they have more freedom? A lot of the seniors and juniors, along with most of the sophomores, have cars to drive to school.

Having a car gives students the freedom to go places without having to call on their parents to get them there.

“It makes me more capable of doing what I want in the long run,” Christian Starbuck, junior, said.

Mackinzie Patrick, junior, had a different idea. She said that her parents have allowed her the responsibility of being on her own by having her get a car, but that she has also pulled away from the responsibility of picking up siblings and doing things for her parents.

Although some students said that they don’t have a lot of responsibility, many parents do call on their students to pick up siblings or go grocery shopping for them, giving them more responsibility.

Giving students access to go places provides them with freedom, but most students don’t pay for most things needed in order to drive, like their insurance.

They count on their parents to pay for those kinds of expenses for their cars.

Also, most students rely on their parents to change their oil for them and sometimes pay for gas, but they still have to take care of their car.

Over half of the 166 students surveyed by the newspaper said they have to take care of their cars, such as making sure the car is clean on the inside.

Knowing how to change a tire and washing it are a few other responsibilities that students have to keep in mind when it comes to maintaining their cars in general.

When it comes to gas almost half of the students pay about 30$ to 50$ on gas per month.

Even though students may help maintain their cars, they often don’t know some key information.

For example, a lot of students don’t know how many miles per gallon their cars get, but some said that their parents knew.

“I’ve asked my parents before. I believe they said my car gets about 16 miles per gallon,” Connor Lewis, junior, said.

This reliance on parents may come to an end for some when seniors take their cars with them to college.

There they will have to pay for gas and change their oil on their own time and with their own money.

Other seniors that won’t take their cars will probably result in walking or having someone else give them rides to where they need to go.

Overall, having a car means responsibility for students, but it also means freedom.