Chico State’s party school reputation is common knowledge in California, but you can’t experience Chico until you’ve partied here yourself. I mean, what else is there to do in a small town, populated by young adults who love to raise the roof and set things on fire.

A night is incomplete until you have witnessed a dusty old couch being set in flames and at least one overly intoxicated dude jumping off the balcony into a crowd.

From an outsider’s point of view, Chico might seem like a huge raging town but in reality, it is just like any other college town.

After all, Chico was rated the top party school in the nation by Playboy Magazine in 1987, folks. It has been 30 years since this has been established. It’s time for everyone to calm down about this irrelevant ranking that many don’t want to be associated with in the first place.

It’s safe to say that this reputation of being a “party” school has definitely died down, however many northern Californians still see it as the party epicenter.

When Halloween rolls around each year, “out of towners” feel entitled to come on down to Chico and join our celebrations because of our reputation.

For those who are unaware of the term, “out of towners” refers to a group of people, who have no business being in Chico, coming to party. These are usually strangers, not your best friend from back home who just wants to see you.

Most of the time, they find small boonie Chico to be way more interesting than their smaller, boonier town. Whatever be the reason, it annoys college students who have to deal with the higher chance of trouble. The more people, the more chances of some crazy thing happening.

It is usually pretty obvious to spot the non-locals standing in the corners downtown trying to find somewhere to go, often looking like a lost freshman during welcome week.

Although their intentions are to join in the hype, many end up causing a large amount of unnecessary chaos. Chico Police are extremely aware of this influx of party-goers as they are stationed at every block downtown, looking for trouble.

Chico has been dealing with multiple shootings recently, such as the one that occurred on Seventh St. and Salem. Honestly, just go home, please. From the students of Chico State to the instigating randoms, get out, our town is crazy enough as is.

Per usual, take precautionary measures when planning your night out. Remember the rule of thumb to never walk alone and always be fully aware of your surroundings. Be safe and have as much fun as you can without those out of towners.

Danielle Cortes can be reached at [email protected] or @theorion_news on Twitter.