Questions about School Security
A new security measure was enacted in November at Leonia High School. Students are now expected to scan into the school with their Student IDs in the morning when they first enter the school. This latest addition came with conflicting opinions from students and staff. The main entrance, the only entrance students are allowed to enter, is much more crowded than usual due to a number of people either not having their ID’s in hand as they enter and taking time to take them out or due to technical difficulties when it comes to the scanners. Leonians have also pointed out that the concept of homeroom is pointless now as people are already marked as here and therefore do not need to report to their homerooms for attendance. I interviewed three people at Leonia High School about their opinions on the new security measures.
According to Mr. Lou Failla, a member of the LHS security, “The security systems are working, but we are always trying to get better and our number one goal is student and administration’s safety at all times.” When asked what he thinks about student criticism following the new security measures, he stated, “It might be a slight inconvenience to the students, but the overall safety of having one entrance in and out gives us the ability to control and monitor who comes in and out of the building.”
From the point of view of junior Niko Phelps, “The new security measures are needless honestly. Like, I don’t think us scanning our IDs in the morning is really going to do much.” Although he does not necessarily agree with all of the new security measures, he believes that “not allowing anyone inside who isn’t coming in from the front is effective.” When asked if he believed too much focus was being put on school security instead of other potential issues, he states, “Of course, like, they aren’t doing anything about any other issues in the school. I’ve heard people constantly complain there is no soap, smoking is still a big issue, and some of the bathrooms don’t even have mirrors or working sinks. It’s a mess.”
As stated by Dakota Roberts, “Only allowing us to leave through two doors is a little much. As long as we have our lanyards we should be fine.” When asked what security measures he believes work best, he replied, “I believe that the lanyards work best because if someone didn’t have one then we could tell that they don’t actually go to the school.” He also believes that “we should have maybe one teacher outside of each bathroom to monitor them. Like if a teacher notices too many people going into one bathroom they can report and do something about it.”
Security measures are important to implement in every school. Although there are conflicting opinions when it comes to new policies and rules at Leonia High School, ultimately there is a reason for each and every one of them: to ensure the safety of students and faculty.
Edited by: Katerina Romanides