According to Education Week, there were a total of 221 school shootings in the United States in 2024. Administration has responded to the threat of school violence in a multitude of ways.
School resource officer Wade Larkin is employed by the Downers Grove Police Department and is currently stationed at DGS.
“We are one of the lucky schools that has a big security staff. They’re a really good cohesive team with where they are at all times. They have good eyes on the kids,” Larkin said.
Since moving to District 99 in 2022, Principal Arwen Lyp has helped implement changes in school safety protocol.
“We made the change that all classroom doors remain closed and locked at all times,” Lyp said. “Even though there are some inconveniences with that, we made a decision, both at DGS and district-wide, that that would be something we would do as a preventative.”
In the past two years, safety drills have also been modified. The school follows ALICE (Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate) procedures when it comes to dealing with threats of violence. Seven administrators, including Lyp, are ALICE-certified trainers.
“We used to just talk about how we would barricade doors and what we could do. But last year, we changed our practices and actually had everyone practice barricading. We [also] trained teachers in how to secure doors,” Lyp said.
Larkin has also taken steps to improve security throughout the school.
“In terms of safety features in the building, there has been an increasing amount of things put in since I got here in August. I’ve already made requests and made contacts for bulletproof glass to be put into the [school],” Larkin said.
Sophomore Jonas Rylander is satisfied with the security protocols in the building.
“We have a variety of highly trained security guards constantly patrolling the building, keeping an eye out for threats that could be a danger to all of our students and teachers,” Rylander said.
Despite these safety measures, some students still worry about school violence, including sophomore Billy Barrett.
“Because of all the school shootings around here, I fear that it might happen here, but I know we have good protection,” Barrett said.
Lyp believes that a positive school environment can promote safety.
“The most important thing that we’re really focusing on is making sure that every student feels connected here at DGS. One thing schools can do to prevent violent acts is to make sure that every student feels connected,” Lyp said.
When students or staff see something suspicious, it is recommended that they report it immediately in order to prevent violent acts.
“The staff here is very receptive and kind,” Larkin said. “If you see something, say something. So if you perceive a threat or some kind of safety issue, the staff will address it immediately.”
Even though most reports don’t result in a threat toward the school, staff members still want to be notified of anything suspicious.
“We have students reporting things that seem off on a regular basis. 99 out of 100 times they are just very small things but do require some intervention or a student just needing some extra love, care and attention,” Lyp said.
