Why Stuyvesant Students Keep Losing Their OMNY Cards

OMNY cards are one of Stuyvesant students’ most essential belongings. Recently, however, numerous students have reported losing their cards. Others have reported that their OMNY cards have stopped working for no apparent reason. This has caused various problems for students, with many admitting to jumping over the fare machine to avoid a twice-daily $2.90 fee. Prior to winter break, the guidance office spent the school week hard at work to ensure that all students in need receive a new card. However, this raised an interesting question: Why are so many students losing their OMNY cards?

There are many theories going around, but the most popular one states that the New York subway system’s rats are the ones stealing OMNY cards. Stuyvesant is known for its intense schoolwork and overworked students; sleep-deprived students often end up sleeping during their commutes to and from school, making them the perfect target for subway rats. 

New York City rats have been scientifically proven to be smarter than rats in other parts of America, and perhaps even smarter than the average Florida man seen on headlines. These rats have learned to target students, especially those who prefer to keep their bags under their seats, as they have started distinguishing between the different OMNY cards. 

Subway rats have been found using student OMNY cards for special purposes. Obviously, they are small enough and do not have to swipe into public transportation with an OMNY card. Instead, these rats use the card’s material to build shelters across train stations. Additionally, the chip inside of the card provides rats with more technological resources to communicate with one another. Traces of chewed-up pieces of OMNY cards have been spotted throughout different subway stations, along with pieces of wire, plastic bags, and food wrappers, all of which are believed to come from the rats. 

This speculation has encouraged a rise in anxiety among Stuyvesant students. When students wake up at their stop, they frantically search through their pockets and bags, realizing that they have lost their card. Students who experience this will feel fatigued from their unfulfilling nap and confused by their missing OMNY card, having no recollection of their card being stolen by the cheeky rodent. 

Thus, fewer Stuyvesant students still nap on the subway. Although this has prevented more students from losing their OMNY cards, more of the Stuyvesant population has become sleep-deprived as a result. Many teachers have growing concerns over their students’ well-being, but they are powerless against the subway rats. As one anonymous user on Instagram shared, Stuyvesant’s “goal in 2025 is to avoid all rats.” While it is still unsure what is going on with the rats in the subway system, it is safe to say that New Yorkers should be ready for anything to happen whenever, wherever.