Searching for what's best on school safety
As a nation, we've been searching for answers since April 20, 1999, when two troubled students turned Columbine High School in Colorado into a mass murder scene. As residents of the Tri-Cities, we watched with disbelief as that dreadful chapter in our country's history unfolded on television newscasts.
We did the same April 16 of last year when a troubled student again turned on other students in a rampage at Virginia Tech.
When it happened at Northern Illinois on Valentine's Day, it felt more like a hard blow to the stomach, knocking the wind out of us and ultimately leaving us with heavy hearts.
Just before the Northern Illinois tragedy, St. Charles North High School was in a heightened state of security because of threatening messages in a bathroom, a criminal act that had also played out at NIU late last year. Just after the NIU tragedy, the same troubling scenario occurred at Geneva High School, with threatening messages in a bathroom causing many students to stay home on a school day.
It all has caused much public debate in city halls and school board rooms, as well as at our kitchen tables and family rooms. It has triggered debate among parents about whether to send your child to school in the wake of such threats, or keep them home as the ultimate safety measure. It is difficult to say what is right or wrong in regards to individual family decisions. We would be inclined, however, to agree with those who make the statement that by sending their children to school, they are not going to allow those who would do us harm to dictate how we live our lives.
It also makes sense to us to heighten security in the aftermath of a threat, no matter how vague. School officials should be applauded for the way they have handled recent incidents. We more fully support the notion that solutions can be found as a result of the increased attention and community focus on school safety. It has always been present, but never so much as in the wake of NIU and other threats. The question becomes how can we best make our schools a safe zone on a regular basis, not just when police and staff are on alert because of a threat.
Parents at the recent St. Charles school district Summit 303 meeting made it clear that school security is a top concern and priority. Narrowing down a complex issue, the focus at this summit was on controlling access to school buildings. But talk about metal detectors, spot searches and other restrictions has occurred in school safety discussions. Elgin High School, for example, has used a metal detector program since 1992, after a student stabbing triggered more safety precautions.
Any hesitation about overreacting to isolated incidents or limiting freedom on our school campuses has slowly given way to heightened perception of danger and a trait our schools try to instill in students -- critically thinking about a serious problem with the hope that our solutions can help save lives.