One of the most popular La Jolla High Instagram accounts happens to be “not affiliated with La Jolla High School.” The LJHS “Almost Friday” Instagram accounts are anonymously run by students, and have gained massive popularity on campus. Every Thursday, these accounts post photos submitted by students to celebrate the end of a school week. The subjects of these posts range from mostly harmless selfies to intentionally embarrassing candid photos, and the accounts have increased in prevalence dramatically this year. While highly controversial for the sharing of “unaffiliated” LJHS images, “Almost Friday” accounts are a source of joy for many students.
According to some students, “Almost Friday” accounts give the LJHS community something to look forward to weekly and an outlet to connect with their peers. Junior Ari Kazenellenbogen describes the accounts as, “a highlight to some people’s week; they get to see funny photos of their friends and their peers.” A weekly post from an “Almost Friday” account can be a nice thing to look forward to for many students, yet the levity it brings to a student’s day is rarely found in the subjects of the photos.
While “Almost Friday” is seemingly all fun and games, the photos have occasionally become a center of controversy. “No one is actually consenting to these [photos]. It’s like an invasion of privacy,” says junior Liana Welsing. “Almost Friday” accounts that post images without the consent of its subjects seem to create a more hostile high school environment, where people’s trust in each other dwindles and feelings are hurt.
Despite this, the “Almost Friday” Instagram accounts are widely loved among the majority student population at La Jolla High. Sophomore Jayden Granfield shared his point of view saying, “I love them. It’s pretty cool. I like how it explains and shows everything that happens at La Jolla.” He added, “if it’s used correctly and if people are respectful with it,” Kaztenellenbogen says, “It could be a good thing.”