May Madness: Annual 'Hotness' Contest Continues at Issaquah High

Springtime brings many long-held customs to high schools in Sammamish and Issaquah. Standardized tests. Prom. Senior pranks. Graduation.

At Issaquah High School, spring also marks the return of a tradition many parents and students find offensive—or at least problematic: May Madness.

The "contest" pits female students against one another and asks their male peers to vote for whomever they deem more attractive. Several media outlets reported on the matter this week, with most focusing on IHS. 

As KING 5 reported, school administrators say their hands are somewhat tied because the online content is not being posted on school property, and organizers are very careful to maintain their anonymity.

“These are pretty smart folks behind this. They know their first amendment rights. They're very quiet about who it is and the group behind it,” Issaquah School District spokeswoman Sarah Niegowski told the TV station.

And Issaquah's not the only school with students holding this type of online popularity contest. May Madness has also been a problem in previous years at Kirkland's Juanita High, where students are apparently using Twitter to direct their classmates to the online polls.

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Are you concerned about May Madness? Do you think school officials are doing enough to manage it? Tell us in the comments section.