Recently, there has been a massive increase in our school’s security system, with strict enforcement of only using the main entrance to get into the building. Despite the dozens of other doors throughout the building, no students are allowed to enter or leave the building through these exits.
Despite the backlash that these rules have evoked from students, it is extremely important to follow these rules in order to maintain a safe, stable environment for students and faculty. While it may seem like a simple change, by funneling all students, staff, and visitors through one controlled point of entry and exit, the school administration can more effectively manage and protect the school environment, which is crucial for a productive learning environment.
One of the primary reasons for this policy of using one main exit and entrance is to guarantee that only authorized individuals are entering the building. Funneling all people coming into the building into one place makes it possible for security to check for ID cards every single time a person enters the building, and this makes it so that nobody unidentifiable, and possibly dangerous, can enter the building.
Every person entering our school must have an ID card. This drastically reduces the chances of someone gaining unauthorized access to our school. While this is helpful to school safety, almost all students find this new ID requirement extremely annoying and tedious. Often, students rush into school after lunch to get to their next class, but they are forced to stop and take out their IDs every single time to show them to security. This makes many students late, and it is very frustrating for some.
“Every time I enter the building, whether that be before school or after lunch, I need to stop walking and take off my bag and scrounge around for my ID. This usually takes me a full minute and can make the difference between me being on time and me being late,” said junior Luke McNaughton.
Despite the negative opinion of these ID check requirements, other students understand the necessity and importance of it. It’s annoying to take out an ID every time, but many students would rather do that than be put in danger.
“Although it is really repetitive and often seems unnecessary, I understand why these rules are in place, especially with the number of school shootings going up in the past few years,” said junior Brandon Lam.
According to a report from the Center for Homeland Defense and Security, the US saw over 300 school shootings in 2022 alone, the highest number ever recorded in a single year. This is a significant increase compared to previous years, as in the 2010s, there were on average 11.4 school shootings per year, but from 2018-2022, this number jumped to 50 per year.
Many have suggested allowing the other entrances and exits to be open during school hours, which might seem realistic at first glance, but it is simply not feasible with the ratio of students to security guards at our school. We would need one security guard for each exit, in order to make sure that only students and known personnel will enter the school.
Despite the backlash, decreasing traffic entering and exiting school is of the highest importance. It should not be the school’s responsibility to make sure that students are on time for their classes. Knowing the extra steps it takes to enter the building now, students must factor in extra time when they begin heading into school for their class, and keep their IDs in an easy-to-reach place.
Overall, it comes down to safety: the school would rather compromise convenience for safety, which makes perfect sense. The school’s main goal and responsibility is to keep everyone safe and secure, and so far, this method is working.