I think I have a unique perspective on this- the difference is in Madison, we have more things to do- no pun intended. At New Hope, eh....not so much. They have to have something to talk about- especially since the baseball team has gone down - although they had a good showing this year.
So, with nothing to do, the fact that you're banging your history teacher topic comes to the surface quite quickly. Followed by hanging out at the water tower.
I'm telling you- those people at New Hope thrive off of drama.