Ever feel shackled by the daunting aura, sitting in class, clenching your pencil and paper, knowing your body won’t let you conceal that itching cough, haggling with your throat? The one that tries its best to expose your very presence, especially knowing you have already used up your three “free trial coughs” before someone gives you the stank eye. Before you know it, that protruding cough has nothing else to do but burst from the depths of your chest. You look up and see faces looking right back at you. The overwhelming cloak of shame quickly covers you and pushes you into a corner. Undoubtedly, you know you were just hit with -600 aura points.

Many things can add up to this entirely hypothetical point-based system. For example, pulling a push-open door in public, something I recently did at the mall as my family and others watched. Of course, my younger brother dared to tell me that I had lost -500 aura points. Or waiting to hold the door for the person behind you. It doesn’t necessarily have to be negative points. Positive points are accumulated by acts like a teacher giving out extra credit or simply making a 3-point shot in basketball. Something that will boost your appearance, your presence—or rather, your aura.

This humorous rally system is called the “Aura” trend, which derives from a TikTok trend and began in early May 2024. According to Molly Byrne, a journalist from Dexerto, TikTok’s ‘Aura’ trend consists of an individual’s tally of hypothetical points to rank their own “cool factor.”

Although recently the idea of ‘Aura’ has been swept by the social media trend, according to Christina Lonsdale, an author from Healthline.com, aura is a low electrical field that “we as humans radiate,” known by ancient cultures and civilizations. This idea follows the concept that each person radiates their own unique energy color and various lengths of vibrations.

Even though the concept of aura is older than some of the oldest antiques, there’s been a spiral of creative responses to this trend. One TikToker claimed he lost 600 aura points for sitting on a wet bench during school. Another added, “I lost 3,000 aura today ’cause my sweatshirt got stuck on the fence and pulled me backward.”

It’s funny to say, with all these negatively accumulated points, most of the results aren’t so bad. A TikToker by the name of ‘Hassan’ says he, “Gained 500 aura today because I touched the top of the doorframe.” Many others, like ‘030lesly,’ shared his experience with ‘A day in the life’ calculating aura at the gym, and many of his followers enjoyed joining in and commenting on their own ranks for the day.

This trend has seen many facets as it’s been interpreted or used in different ways. For some, it’s a power they use against people—for others, it’s a ranking system. Here at LHS, I’ve heard students define it as someone’s reputation. However, some say it’s more than that. It can be someone’s rank of respect. For me, this trend gained my attention when I began to notice my own positive and negative actions throughout the day. All the points tallied up by the end of the day go towards my entire presence, ranking my aura.

This trend was seemingly harmless and silly enough, knowing this point system can be applied to anyone—even the staff here at LHS. I decided to interview some of my peers here at LHS to find out the top 5 teachers or staff who have the most aura. Naturally, this means the teacher or staff who has the most points by cool factor comes out on top. Many names came up as I continued to interview my peers, but it all changed when they went ahead and told me the reasoning behind their decisions.

The more in-depth students explained and explored the ways of determining someone’s aura, the more interesting it became. Former LHS student, now graduated, Luca Martins said he was torn between Mr. Bly and Mr. Fanning, a teacher who has already retired. Coincidentally enough, they were both history teachers, but it wasn’t about that. He said it was because they both had “the best stories.” He described Mr. Bly as chill and Mr. Fanning as pretty cool. In the end, Mr. Bly came out on top because Mr. Fanning had already left the building, and Mr. Bly’s stories were always just a “bit better.”

Another major influence among multiple student bodies is Mrs. Masse. Known for her lunchroom talks and unapologetic love for Taylor Swift, one student added that they “love going to Mrs. Masse’s for anything” and that their conversations are “refreshing.”

For students, a teacher’s connection with the class and its members always leaves a good impression and conveniently boosts their aura. Surprisingly to most, Mrs. Nemeth, the principal here at LHS, was another name that arose from one of my peers. A student justified this top-five nominee by saying, “Her presence is everywhere. I even know that it’s her walking down these hallways by the click of her heels.” They are not wrong. Every teacher knows her principles by the tip of their tongue, and everything is connected to Mrs. Nemeth in one way or another. Even so, it is only natural because she’s our principal and has been for more than a decade. Although it’s safe to say Mrs. Nemeth gained +100 aura with that surprising performance at this year’s 2024 senior farewell.

The name that was given multiple times was Mr. Nascin. He is a very honorable mention, mostly known for his hysterically long Taylor Swift playlist filled with plenty of “vibes.” People say you don’t have to have him as a teacher to like him as a person. Students say it’s not just his math skills that boost his aura but his “kindness” and his ability to “understand [students as people],” commented Junior Ariana Adrien when asked about the topic. His positivity in a subject most people fret makes all the difference.

Another student nominated Mrs. Valentine as a teacher with immense aura. When asked why, she said, “She has a big personality,” and they all love her for it. Although Junior Kaisa Lipor said that she could “see Mr. Cangemi being top 5 with the most aura.” Most students of his would agree; he may teach a challenging class, but he’s known for his relaxed teaching style and his prevalent curiosity that encourages his students.

I would like to nominate Mr. Mulvehill as one of the top teachers with the most aura. It may sound surprising, but I truly believe this, and here is why. He’s known for his extremely rigorous teaching style, especially for those who’ve had him freshman year. He teaches the type of class that only the bravest of souls would purposely select because of how much work and effort goes into everything he assigns. The type of class that makes you feel like you deserve a degree for passing. Although many fear his class, past students never have bad things to say about his personality. Sure, he may be quirky at times, but you can tell his love for history, and he honestly tries to make his students feel the same. Others say his class is more rigorous than fun, but his prevalent presence is undeniable at LHS.

Now, ‘aura’ is known as a social media trend. It’s a way for people to actively rank how well or not an individual does something. It reminds us that we are all human and not perfect, but we can also look to those who undoubtedly make a difference with their presence. As I concluded my investigation, it seems that students based teachers’ and staff’s aura on their experience with them and the feeling their presence makes. Teachers like Mr. Nascin, Mrs. Masse, Mr. Bly, Mr. Cangemi, and Mrs. Valentine arose as LHS’s top 5 teachers with the most aura. Whether teachers were judged by their likability or their cool factor is up to the individual. Feel free to comment below on which teacher or staff you think has the most aura and why.