When the word “school” comes to mind, we often think of a safe, nurturing environment where students come to learn. But really, how safe is a school nowadays? Recently, P.G. County Police arrested Deonte Carraway, 22, on account of six state charges of sex abuse, eight charges of manufacturing child pornography, and various sexual assault charges. A volunteer at Judge Sylvania Woods Elementary School, Carraway admitted to sexually abusing children and recording the acts on his phone. Eleven victims have been identified so far, but there is a possibility of more.

Not too long afterwards, on February 29th, a shooting near Duval High school sent 4 high schools in the area into lockdown mode. Even though Roosevelt is fairly close to the school, the building was not locked down.

According to everytownresearch.org, there have been 170 school shootings in America since 2013, averaging one per week. With the increase of school shootings not only over the last two years, but the past decade, questions are raised on what precautionary measures schools must take to keep intruders out, and students safe. In response to this, many schools made their  security tighter, enforced stricter safety policies, and have even attempted to train their teachers on how to handle situations if an active shooter were to enter the school. Roosevelt is one of these schools.

Many noticeable changes have been apparent in the halls of the school. For one thing, students notice the more frequent holler of the security officers, yelling at them to “Put on your I.D.’s!” Another change that’s obvious is the new regulation stationed at the door leading out to the temporarys: a student must buzz a bell and show their I.D. to a camera in order to get into the school. While the school’s intention to keep students safe is clear, it proves to be a hassle for students to show their I.D. every time they need to enter the building from the temps. Many students forget their I.D., and that can prove especially detrimental if the student is rushing to the bathroom.

The goal of this new policy is not to be a nuisance, but to serve as protection. “Our goal is to lock the back door and to ensure that folks that don’t go to school here can’t come in, so it’s critical for students to wear their I.D.’s,” says Mr. McNeil.

Students have mixed emotions about this new policy. Some students are for it.”I think it’s a little extreme, but I see why they’re enforcing it,” said junior Anderson Urias. “It’s just to be safe, to prevent anything bad from happening.” 

“I kind of like it, but sometimes it makes me mad, because if I forget my I.D., I can’t get back into the school,” stated sophomore Sabrina Eller. “But it’s good because people who don’t go to this school, such as people who want to hurt other people, can’t get in.”

Other students are totally against the policy. “I think it’s utterly stupid, and just unnecessary,” said Tobi Plumpter, a senior. “The policy states that the I.D. has to be scanned. A lot of people don’t have their I.D.s, and what happens when a person has a temp. I.D.? I feel like it’s good that they’re taking precautionary measures, but I feel like it can be disadvantageous as well because there could be an emergency where people do need to enter the school.”

So how can this policy be adjusted so that it benefits both students’ safety and their convenience? Some suggestions were offered by students.

“Instead of having your I.D., the school could scan your fingerprint instead, in case you forget your I.D,”states Eller. “But I think that would cost a lot of money.”

“In New York schools, they have bag checks,” suggests Plumpter. “Although that does seem like a violation of privacy to some, it does make it generally safer. They also have metal detectors.”

Simply wearing an I.D. serves a greater purpose than being a nuisance to students. It ensures that the student is supposed to be here, and allows teachers to easily pick out who aren’t. Simply wearing an I.D. serves as protection. With the increase of school shootings and intruders easily coming into our supposed “safe haven”, schools are taking every safety precaution they can grab onto. The least students can do, to ensure their safety and everyone else’s, is wear their I.D.