Catie Hopkins ’13: The Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in December and the January incident involving an unidentified photographer in Episcopal’s athletic center served as catalysts for the creation of new security practices on campus; while keeping people safe should be the administration’s primary concern, the way the school currently goes about protecting us is inefficient.
Days after an unidentified photographer made his way into the athletic facilities, the school implemented a few immediate changes in campus security. Everyone noticed the increased security presence in the athletic center, but the real change came as more of a surprise. Seniors returning from lunch off campus were met with locked doors at the back of the Campus Center
Although the locking of the back doors was only a minor inconvenience, students quickly discovered the doors on the side of the building by the library were unlocked. This led to discussion among the students about the practicality of this security.
While most students believe that security is important, very few understand the security measures that have been taken so far. Locking the doors is an important first step, but locking the students out of the building is counterproductive, especially when the door only a few feet away is unlocked.
Thomas Boynton ’13 agreed, stating, “Locking only the back door is pointless. It’s inconvenient and if we can walk around to the side, can’t anyone?”
Logically, all the doors should be locked if the administration is considering locking even a few of them, and students should be given keycard access instead of risking being locked outside.
Episcopal must take more immediate action to increase security, an issue of great concern given the openness of campus. Although guests theoretically have to check in at the main office, it is easy enough to get on campus with no one noticing or seeking identification.
Parents often walk into the middle and upper school buildings without question from the offices when they enter the building. While the staff may assume that they have checked into the main office, there is no way they can know who has already been checked in on campus.
Episcopal must adapt to the changing world and create appropriate security measures. The best start to this would be by locking all the doors to academic buildings.
Students and faculty should be given keycards to unlock the doors, and guests should have to be buzzed into the main office when they come onto campus. Many area schools already do this to increase security, which forces guests to be recognized by the main office before entering the building.
Every student in the middle and upper Schools at Agnes Irwin is given a keycard to scan for entry into the building, and the same procedure is in place at many other area schools.
In a move toward new policies, students recently received an email notifying them of a new Emergency Response System. This system will collect phone numbers from all students who voluntarily provide it and use this information to send out campus alerts in case of an emergency. This is another preliminary step in creating a safer campus, and will allow for better communication in an emergency.
However, despite these preliminary changes, students are still calling for more security. The school should consider locking doors at all times and implementing a key card access system, as these changes would pose only minor inconveniences while greatly benefitting school safety.

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