a secure campus makes us insecure

by Kamiak Student, Reporter

Op-Ed, School News

May 24th, 2022. Nineteen students and two teachers are fatally shot and seventeen others are terribly wounded. The Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas was an unforgettable tragedy, and regardless of one’s political beliefs, it should never have happened. In light of this tragedy, the Mukilteo School District made the executive decision in the late summer of 2022 to lock all the doors in our schools. From Serene Lake Elementary to Mariner High, every external door remains locked during school hours.

Kamiak has been hit especially hard. With our over eighty-five external doors, and our East Campus and PAC, the new policy isolates some of our students from others. Whether running an errand for a teacher, arriving as a running start student, or even just coming a few minutes late to class, many students have experienced the annoyance of being greeted by locked door after locked door after locked door.

For these students, the frustration does not just come from the locked doors themselves, but rather from the multiple doors that are continually propped open — which completely negates the benefits of locking the doors in the first place. Additionally, the doors that seem to almost always be propped open are the ones that open directly to the outside world. The doors in front of the campus’ main entrance, for instance, are the ones that should be locked most consistently — and yet, during lunch, they remain open. The closed door campus may sound safer in theory, but it fails in practice.

It was a fateful Monday morning. My alarm hadn’t gone off, and I was late for school. I tried my best to get ready as soon as I could, and drove to school. I checked my car clock: 7:25 AM. “Hm... five minutes late can’t be too bad,” I thought to myself. I made my way from the parking lot to main campus for my tardy slip.

I tugged on the metal door handle. Locked. “Right…” I thought. “Well, I guess I'll wait for someone.” But then I spotted a passerby, gave a quick knock, and they opened the door. After making my way to bookkeeping, I trekked over to East Campus to go to my first period. I checked my phone again: 7:28 AM. I tugged on the East Campus door. Again, locked. “Well, someone will show up in a second,” I thought.

But those seconds turned into a minute, and then two. Finally, I decided to call the number instead of barbarically knocking, considering the fact that class had already begun. I told them my predicament. They said they would send someone over. I hung up. Then I waited. And waited. And waited. I could feel my frustration grow, but remembered: “They’re coming all the way from main campus. It will take time.” But after five minutes had passed, I was furious. I was about to begin banging on the door. Just then, I saw someone walking by inside — probably heading to the bathroom. I did my small tap on the door, and just like that, I was FINALLY in.

I entered my first period. The clock read 7:43 AM. It had taken me 18 minutes to get from my car to my first period, and over half of this time was just spent waiting. Did I just get unlucky? Maybe. Would it have been faster if I had just knocked? Probably. Was the time I spent waiting unacceptable? Absolutely. Considering the massive inconvenience the locked campus creates for students — preventing them from getting to class — they seem to “protect” too well. Unfortunately, this is a districtwide decision, so we seem to be out of luck for now. So next time you’re on your way to class, don’t forget to hold the door open for the person behind you!

DISCLAIMER: The opinions, beliefs, and viewpoints expressed by the various authors in this paper do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs, and viewpoints of Kamiak High School or The Gauntlet. 

Sources

Harrison, Stephen. “School Gates Locked During October Holidays.” Cotswold Mātāhae, https://hail.to/cotswold-matahae/article/mcFkbNL. Accessed 10 Nov. 2022.