High school seniors throughout the Santa Clarita Valley are spending these past couple of months committing to colleges, getting ready for prom and graduation and even … putting on their goggles and floaties?
Students from schools throughout the William S. Hart Union High School District are participating in their own versions of “Senior Assassin,” a game in which each participating student at the respective schools is assigned a target for the week. If the target is not acquired, then the student is eliminated from the pool.
The game is not an official school function — it’s run by the students who choose to participate. The rules for participants at the different schools are relatively the same, but with subtle variations from school to school.
Students must obtain their targets by spraying them with a water gun, adhere to the “safe zones” and even wear floaties or goggles in order to remain “safe” in public.
Buybacks after being eliminated are common, but each group has rules regarding the amount spent and the time limit.
“Around this time, the second half of the school year, we start a game, and the buy-in for the game is $5 for Golden Valley. I think the game started off with 60 people, and it’s for seniors only,” Golden Valley senior Ismaeel Islam said. “Once everyone signs up, the people running the game will assign everyone a target. The way they allocate these targets is randomized, and they send us messages on Instagram.”
According to Islam, once the participants know who their targets are on Sundays, their incentive is to eliminate them from the game by the next Friday.
“For immunity, you need to wear floaties on your arms, and they have to be inflated above your elbows, or pool goggles have to be over your eyes — they can’t be around your neck or on your forehead. The only way to move on to the next round is to get your target out by Friday, and you will be entered into the purge, which is essentially a free-for-all, and you have 24 hours to get the person out,” Islam said.
While the participants focus on their targets, they have to be sure to stay vigilant as they are also someone else’s target.
“There are safe zones. School campuses are safe zones. Your house is a safe zone, unless someone authorizes the person to come into your house. If you were trying to eliminate someone, you knocked on their door and their mother lets you just walk in, that’s completely fair game,” Islam said.
Golden Valley students began their version of the game at the end of February, with up to $1,000 gathered for the winner. Buy-ins were $5, as well as buybacks, initially. Golden Valley students are still able to buy back until the very last week of the game.
“Every two or three weeks, whoever’s eliminated, and if they want to pay the money to get back in the game with a chance to win, then they can. But, the buyback increases as the rounds go on, because it becomes more valuable. I think this buyback will either be $20 or $25,” Islam said. “The original buyback was for anyone who wanted to come into the game or was eliminated, but now it’s only for people who have been eliminated.”
Hart senior Bella Scavo, who is still in the game, has been very dedicated to staying hypervigilant.
“Our rules are mostly like the other schools’ rules. We had 120 students start, and now we’re down to five kids through five rounds. I would say, on average, 10 people get eliminated every week,” Scavo said.
While spring break, which began on Monday, April 7, for Hart district students, was a safe week, Scavo was extra cautious to ensure she would still be safe.
“I went on a family vacation on Monday, [after my family left] for the beach on Saturday, just to make sure I didn’t get caught while on my family trip,” Scavo said.
According to Scavo, safe zones for Hart include: churches, gyms, homes (unless a parent consents to allowing participants in), work and every school site, including parking lots.
“I know Valencia and West Ranch are up to $2,000 to $3,000 because they had a lot more students play,” Scavo said. “I think [Hart] has a little more safe zones than other schools. I feel like [other schools] have a lot more ‘purge days,’ which means they go without their floaties and no one is safe. I know you are not safe in L.A. Fitness for Valencia, but at Hart you are safe.”
Golden Valley students have the option of wearing a floaty or goggles, whereas Hart students must wear both, according to Scavo.
“For my school, the floaties have to be inflated and the goggles have to be visible, so either on our necks or on our heads,” Scavo said. “My strategy has been wearing my floaty and goggles all the time. It can be kind of embarrassing when I’m the only one walking around these older people and they’re just staring at me.”
West Ranch senior Noah Douphner is still playing in West Ranch’s game, but is vigilant about remaining in the game as of the time of this story’s publication.
“I currently still am playing, but you never know as on a moment’s notice you can get out. The best part of the experience has been just discussing it with my friends and having fun strategic conversations on how we could get someone out,” Douphner wrote in an email to The Signal. “I think it’s a really fun way to conclude senior year. I think it’s a fun social way to have interactions with people you might not have had previously, and it’s one last way to spend some time with friends you might not ever see again.”
Andrew Phan, a senior at Saugus High School, described the logistics of assigning targets for the participants in his cohort.
“The process for becoming an organizer, it’s more like somebody steps up to the plate. Me and my buddy, Adrian Correa, noticed that the other schools around were starting it up, and we’re like, ‘If nobody’s going to do it at our school, we don’t want to miss out on such a big event,’” Phan said. “So we made an Instagram, followed a bunch of seniors, and then we were about to spread the word and get it up and running.”
Over 200 Saugus seniors participated, with buy-ins at $5 and buybacks at $10, where 20 to 30 people tried to revive their stance in the game, according to Phan.
Many high school groups, including Saugus, used an app called “Splashin” to communicate with the participants and organize the results. In addition, it is the responsibility of organizers, such as Phan, to hold onto the pool of money.
“We hold onto the money. It’s a trust process. Then whoever wins, we just drop off the money,” Phan said. “We force everyone to send us videos of their elimination, then we go through the process of whether the water gun did hit them, because people could cheat and say they eliminated their target, when they didn’t. At the end of the day, it’s a game, regardless of how much money is in the pot, to bond all the seniors before we all leave. It’s to have fun, not take anything so seriously.”
Debbie Dunn, communications coordinator for the Hart District, stated that the high schools in the district are aware of the students’ participation in “Senior Assassin,” and some principals have sent emails warning parents of the potential harm of engaging in the game.
Principals from schools including Canyon, West Ranch and Valencia expressed that they did not condone the game, and while it may be harmless fun, there have been jokes made by students regarding violence. In addition, the schools expressed no tolerance with water guns being on school premises, as well as no affiliation with the game.
The participants who spoke to The Signal indicated the goal is harmless fun, and that the rules of their games do not allow it to take place on campus.
With seniors throughout the SCV bonding, both through their schools and as a community, participants agree the competitive nature of the game will leave lasting memories as they conclude their high school careers.
“It’s definitely been a great experience. At first, I was hesitant because with volleyball season, I thought I wouldn’t have enough time. It’s been such a fun experience because you have to compete in this game. You have to be moving around a lot, you have to be active. It’s a very interactive game,” Islam said.
“With all this time and work, I really hope I win,” Scavo said.
