The last month or so has been characterized by several acts of violence in schools and communities across the United States. Naturally, these horrific events have shaken up the student body and have taken away many of the joys that come with the end of the school year.
Security vs. Freedom
After 9/11, our nation came together and made the changes that we knew were necessary to prevent such a tragic event from ever being replicated; now, we agree to additional TSA screening measures and even wait in long security lines that can exceed an hour prior to boarding our planes. The world has changed, meaning that students must come to terms with the fact that our freedoms are now limited in the name of security — even if that security comes at the price of our convenience.
Open vs. Closed Campus
The battle between freedom and security often takes the form of one argument: locked versus unlocked doors around the building. Many students have expressed their frustration towards being required to go through the main entrance during the day, and although some have suggested that student ID barcodes could be used to allow people to access locked doors, events like Nikolas Cruz’s massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School demonstrate that preventing outsiders from entering may not always be the ‘cure-all’ to preventing acts of violence. Given that much student parking is located far from the main entrance, more monitored entrances could be added.
Increasing Accountability
As a result of the inconvenience the locked doors have posed, certain students have begun to get creative in their door-propping techniques. Whether it’s the floor mat, a water bottle, or a pencil being shoved in front of the door, students are desperately trying to find shortcuts to gain access into the school instead of entering through the main entrance.
Part of the reason this happens is because students know that there is no punishment for propping the doors open. While those who prop open doors may believe that they are helping other students, they may affect the entire school community if they are not held accountable for their actions.
Thus, the administration should consider monitoring the other entrances around the school and holding students accountable for defying the locked doors policy. If school safety and security is truly at the forefront of administrative concerns, there should be further acknowledgement of the propped doors than simply an announcement over the loudspeaker. If students do break the rules, they should be held accountable. At the same time, if security is a district priority, the school could post security at another entrance, such as the gym lobby, where many students try to enter the building during the day.
