Brittany Overacker
Reporter
In light of recent events, specifically the Newtown school shooting, administrators have taken steps toward increasing security measures. They have limited access to the school by locking all doors, except for those at the front entrance, at 7:45 A.M. These doors are to remain closed and locked throughout the day, encouraging everyone to enter the building through only the main entrance.
According to the New Canaan Daily Voice, an online newspaper that reports local events, the New Canaan Board of Education (BOE) and NCPS administrators met Jan. 9 to discuss security upgrades. According to The Daily Voice, chairwoman of the BOE, Alison Bedula, said that options for schools include positioning monitors and hiring security firms. Although the monitors would not carry weapons, they would ensure that visitors sign in at the front desk.
While the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting in Newtown did call to attention the school’s safety procedures and the extent of their effectiveness, Principal Bryan Luizzi said that the advancements in school protection are not actual reactions to the shooting. “Locking the doors and taking other measures is upon reflection that was prompted by the Sandy Hook shooting,” he said. “It’s not necessarily a response.”
Regardless of what fueled the new security implementations, they give a sense of awareness of who is in the building, Dr. Luizzi said. “We did have an incident last year where somebody who was in Waveny came in through the gym door,” he said. “He wasn’t doing anything wrong, but he didn’t have any business being in the building.”
Dr. Luizzi said that health teacher Mr. Bedard responded immediately. “He saw him, addressed him, walked him down to the main office, and we called the police and dealt with it that way. But if those doors were locked, he wouldn’t have been able to come into the building at all.”
Although the new rule of entering the school through solely the front doors is being enforced to increase safety, many students are responding negatively to such limitations. Senior Mike Powell said that although he sees where administrators are coming from, he finds it ridiculous that he is not allowed into the school through the side doors as a student. “A lot of this is just absurd,” Mike said. “The fact that I will get threatened with suspension for letting one of my friends in through the door is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. The added security is just so the administration can claim they’re doing everything they possibly can to keep the students safe.”
Supervisory Aide Joel Geriak said he is exposed to such discontent when enforcing the prohibition against opening the doors for anyone. “The hardest part is stopping students from letting their friends back into the lounge after leaving through one of the side doors,” he said. “If I see it happening, I immediately close the door, tell the student that if he or she tries to continue doing it they will get in trouble, and then tell the student standing outside to walk around the school and enter from the front.”
However, this doesn’t always stop students from opening side doors for peers. Junior Teddy Bossidy was sent to the office after opening the door for his friends, despite being told not to. “I felt bad about directly disobeying Joel, but I felt like I was doing the right thing for some friends,” he said. Teddy said that he believes being taken to the office was fair, but also that there should be an intermediate in this conflict. “Locking all doors is a good idea, but the administration should find some sort of compromise where students who show valid NCHS ID’s can be let in.”
Senior Eileen Dinnie agrees with Teddy. “The doors being closed early in the morning presents an issue for the students who have morning frees and have to use the front entrance, regardless of where they park their cars,” Eileen said. “Finding a parking spot close to the front doors is nearly impossible after 7:30. I have arrived late to class on more than one occasion because of the extra time needed to find a spot and walk to class.”
However, Eileen said she recognizes the large importance of security measures, and how they are relevant after the recent tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School. With that in mind, she said that she hopes that other procedures are being deliberated to accommodate both student desires and student safety. “I hope a more student-friendly solution to ensure student and faculty protection is being considered,” she said.
According to Dr. Luizzi, other safety measures are being evaluated. Examples include: requiring that visitors ID themselves when entering the building, having parking attendants stop cars more frequently, issuing lockdown drills and utilizing an ID swipe card system.
Dr. Luizzi said he understands student frustrations. “It can be inconvenient and staff members are equally inconvenienced,” he said. “However, these are steps that we need to take.”
In terms of accommodations, Dr. Luizzi said that a balance is trying to be met. “There are some schools, whether in response to Sandy Hook or for other reasons, have gone to total lockdown where nobody is allowed to leave campus,” he said. “That’s not who we are and that’s not what our goal is. We want to let the students enjoy their responsibilities they have earned in having an open campus. But at the same time, we can’t be so open and loose that we don’t know who is coming into the building during the day. We’re just asking for patience and understanding.”
