When One Door Closes, Another Door…Has a Police Officer Standing by It?
Williamsville East High School Sees Increased Security at the Start of the 2018-2019 School Year
Elise Yu
On the first day of school, students here at Williamsville East High School faced a new school rule: the doors leading to the gym and music wing can no longer be used to enter the school.
During the annual “welcome back to school” presentation, Mr. Scanzuso informed students that new policies will be implemented to make our school a safer learning environment. These new policies include locking the gym and music wing doors and having increased security around the main entrances throughout the day.
During the welcome presentation, it was also emphasized that student and faculty ID cards would be needed in gaining entry to the school. Students were told to be vigilant of their surroundings. In response to the shootings in Columbine, Sandy Hook, Parkland, and countless other schools across the nation, it is logical to implement new rules in our school to make students and staff feel more secure throughout the day.
Nationwide, schools have been increasing their security systems to protect their students and staff from outside dangers, with some schools going so far as to have metal detectors installed by entrances.
For most students, these new rules seem to be a mild inconvenience; the music wing doors served as the main entrance in arriving to first period band and orchestra on time, and student athletes used the gym doors to put their gear in the locker rooms before class. Even though it may seem unnecessary to lock these entrances, it is important to remember that no person or school is immune to danger. When a school feels that it is necessary to limit its access from the outside, there are rational thoughts behind this decision.
Our country’s culture surrounding guns is vastly different from that of other countries around the world. It is an unfortunate reality that all schools in the United States are vulnerable to school shootings. Hopefully, in the future, students will not have to worry about potential shootings in their schools. For now, we must take necessary measures to prevent such an atrocity.
It is clear that the Williamsville School District faculty is putting its best efforts into making our schools the safe havens they should be. These new precautions are part of our “see something say something” efforts to make school safer.
