Schools offer an assortment of merchandise, whether it be a class ring, letterman jacket, or even the variety of t-shirts/hoodies provided in the school store. However when purchasing all of these products one can’t help but think, is all this really necessary?

It’s not. School is expensive. On average $688.62 was spent on school supplies for families with children in K-12 in 2014 and families usually pay this amount yearly. If a student participates in electives such as athletics or choir then they are usually expected to contribute to the uniform’s cost or the booster club’s party funds in order for these organizations to have a budget. In addition to these expenses, parents are also encouraged to have their children buy lunch from the school. It’s estimated that adults spend about $441 on lunch money for their children yearly.

What’s more, it’s important for students to be well-prepared for college so investing in college prep courses is usually a definite for most parents. These types of opportunities use up even more of parent’s savings, not to mention the cost to actually take the tests. So, when deciding to purchase a t-shirt in your school store, remember that the item of clothing you are about to own costs roughly the same ($16-$50 in Lovejoy High School’s store) as it will for you to take the SAT (which is about $34-$49).

Your school investments start to add up after awhile. What with Prom (approximately $530 for girls; $250 for boys), Homecoming, extracurricular expenses (team uniforms, voice lessons, etc), or academic charges (books, calculators, supplies) we are spending much more than we realize. Even getting to school requires money nowadays (if you drive yourself to school). All I’m saying is, school is expensive.

So it’s okay not to purchase everything our high school offers us. We will live without the class ring or attending a school dance Sophomore year. Besides, we should be learning how to spend our money more efficiently because soon we won’t have our parents as a financial crutch and we’ll be the ones living with the consequences.