A big part of school is going over safety precautions and what we should do in a real emergency. I won’t disagree that safety is important; however, how we go about talking about safety at school makes me wonder how serious our school really is about our lives. 

Our school has changed entrance procedures so when people come in, they have to check in with security guards. Most visitors give a brief reasoning to why they are at their school and are buzzed right in. That is terrifying when it comes to a threat in the building.

Another issue is that no one knows whether we are having a drill or a real emergency situation. When the fire alarm rang on the first Monday of school, I overheard many students unsure if it was a real fire or not. Many students leisurely got out of the building because they were unaware of a possible real emergency. 

In addition, the fire alarm took place during a passing period. As a student, I have never heard of what to do if there’s a fire, intruder or incoming storm when walking to my next class. With almost the entire school walking the three story building, I can only imagine what horrors would occur if there was an emergency situation.

In hopes to combat possible danger, our school introduced us to ALICE, put into effect on Sept. 26. ALICE is supposed to equip students and staff with the knowledge of what to do in a real emergency. To say the bar was missed is an understatement.

During the ALICE drill, students were given the option to either run or hide. I understand the concept, but in the event of a disaster, students make their own choices and not the choices of the class. This could mean some students leave the building and others stay; the thought of my classing splitting up frightens me beyond belief.

Do not even get me started about the fights in school. I personally have never seen a fight happen at DGS, only the videos that circulate after, but I have no idea what to do if I saw two people fighting in the hallway. If I am ever faced with a fight, I am scared that I might get hurt in the middle. 

Even though emergencies and fights can be rare to happen, it’s the lack of preparation and understanding is what’s truly horrifying. If I don’t know what to do, how can I stay safe throughout the school year?

I understand that some people may feel safe in our building because we have security guards; however, please remember who hands we are putting our lives into. Most of these guards sit at the exits, stand in the lunchrooms and hand out swipes at the swipe station. Though they have been trained, I wonder if any of them have actually been in a serious emergency. 

I respect the security guards’ duty to helping manage all of us throughout the day. That being said, I think it would be beneficial to hear from the guards themselves of what they would do in a crisis.

Another thing that would benefit the school is having the conversation that we have failed to have, going through all the ‘what ifs’ would really help add ease to the school day. 

School is supposed to be about learning. That being said, I really need to learn about what to do in an emergency. I feel like our school as a whole lacks the information of what to do about threats to our safety.