In a survey conducted by The Urban Legend, when asked to rate how judgmental they find Urban’s social scene on a scale from one to five — one being not judgemental at all, and five being very judgmental — 49 out of 78 students (63%) responded with a four or five.

For some, Urban’s social landscape is welcoming and inclusive. For others, it is judgmental and cliquey. How friendly is Urban’s social scene and why?

Some students feel that Urban’s social scene is welcoming. “I’ve always felt … comfortable going up to people and talking to them; I don’t feel judged,” said Zareen Abraham ‘25.

“I would say that Urban’s social scene is welcoming, as evidenced by our all-grade group chat,” said Zach Gordon ‘24. “I can imagine a lot of schools where that wouldn’t exist.”

Arlo Sears-Bicknell ‘24, who spoke at the 2024 Peer Resource panel on social cliques at Urban, compared Urban’s social scene to that at other schools. “I think if I went to any other high school, I would get severely bullied, … [but Urban has an] openness to people who don’t conform to stereotypes from high school movies,” they said.

In the survey conducted by The Urban Legend, when asked to rate how accepting and inclusive Urban’s social scene is on a scale from one to five — one being not welcoming, and five being very welcoming — 37 out of 78 students (47%) ranked it a four or five. 

“You don’t get judged for appearances,” said Lucas Walsh ‘24. “I don’t get judged for my lisp.”

Some students believe that to access this supportive and welcoming social environment, one needs to be outgoing. “If you’re not social, [the social scene] is hella hard,” said Genevieve Davis ‘24. “But I feel like that’s in any situation.”

“I would say Urban is welcoming if you have the confidence for it,” said Frankie Reichman ‘24. “You have to put yourself out there, though. The average [student] is more than happy to be your friend if you’re willing to start that interaction.”

However, not everyone is outgoing. “The average high school student isn’t someone who is going to try and meet people. People are super insecure and don’t want to come off as weird,” said Simi Bohuslav ‘24. 

Some find Urban cliquey, meaning they think certain friend groups are more exclusive. “I think Urban is known as a cliquey school, which holds true, especially freshman and sophomore year,” said Sadie Schultz ‘25.

Davis hypothesizes that some of the clique culture stems from students’ insecurity about being alone, both physically and emotionally. “People just get in groups to be in groups,” she said. “Then it’s a fake group and they fake exclude each other. I feel like people are pretending a lot of s–t.”

“I think people are more exclusionary because it makes them feel more secure,” said Sears-Bicknell.

Others find the social scene judgmental. “I haven’t felt very much judgment towards me, but there have been times where I’ll be talking to someone and they say something about someone else behind their back,” said Ella Braverman ‘27.

“There’s some judgment. … It’s the vibe that [people] have; it’s a little hostile,” said Adora Fong ‘27.

“I feel like whenever I’m saying hi to people that I’m acquaintances with, I have to look over my shoulder after I leave to make sure they’re not talking to their friend about me,” said Lucia Ferris ‘24. “I feel like that’s emblematic of Urban’s social scene.” 

Ella Marinchak ‘26 shared how she thinks Urban’s social scene could feel more welcoming and less judgmental. “I’m not saying be friends with everyone, I’m saying just treat everyone with kindness,” she said. “Even the smallest interaction, like holding the door open for someone, [or] if you see a stranger crying, [bringing them] a tissue. Just small, little things … would make Urban 10 times more welcoming.”