The school day goes on monotonously as students tap their pencils, send quick text messages to their friends, and watch the clock tick down to the bell, allowing their release from class. Unfortunately, for a handful of students at Chardon High School, Ohio, their classes were about to end too soon.
Student Thomas Lane, brought a .22 caliber pistol to his high school and shot five random students, three of whom have died and two of whom have been traumatized.
Chardon High School is an average school, just like Massapequa. Who’s to say it couldn’t happen here? I interviewed our principal, Dr. Williams, to address this issue.
KC: What are some things Massapequa School District does to prepare for an event like what occurred in Chardon High School?
Dr. Williams: All the drills we do, especially the lockdown, lockout, and evacuation drills, prepare for any event where a threat is near or inside the building.
KC: Does any preparation take place outside of the school day?
Dr. Williams: The police frequently inspect the schools and make suggestions as to how we can better secure the school. When the police aren’t monitoring the schools the security department workers we implemented at the beginning of the 2010-2011 school year are sort of hidden, but they’re there. They all have police training, and are skilled at observing and managing crises. They look for any possible threats, and investigate them immediately.
KC: What about students who have an out period? How can they be alerted of any nearby threats?
Dr. Williams: Currently, we make sure to e-mail anybody currently signed up to receive them if anything sudden were to occur, and Parent-Link notifies parents immediately via phone call. In the future, we hope to obtain the correct cell phone numbers for each student so that we could notify each of them through call and/or text, since cell phone usage by high school students has gone up drastically and continues to do so.
After my interview with Dr. Williams, I interviewed the head of the security department for the Massapequa School District, Don Flynn. Dr. Williams provided me with the facts about the school in a general sense, and I hoped Mr. Flynn could further educate me in terms of our security department.
KC: Where do you operate?
Mr. Flynn: We operate everywhere, but our main function is outside, where we can stop any potential threat from getting inside. Our staff of trained observers makes sure that whatever or whoever is there, actually belongs there, and we report what we see to building administration.
KC: What kind of qualifications do you maintain on the staff?
Mr. Flynn: Everyone has an active or retired cumulative experience of at least twenty to twenty-five years in law enforcement, including myself. In addition to that, we have been doing our job for other schools for the past eight years. Our three main guys, Tony Mirra, Tom Lyons, and George Ritter have a combined experience of at least seventy-five years.
KC: About the Ohio State school shooting, what do you do to prevent similar occurrences here in Massapequa?
Mr. Flynn: Our staff of trained observers with experience in crisis management, inspects and resolve small problems to prevent them from escalating any further.
KC: Some schools have metal detectors or card swiping. Could those come here?
Mr. Flynn: I’m not really a fan of either, since any system we implement must have some way of being bypassed, such as weapons being made out of non-metal materials. I would trust a human with compassion to protect the students and staff in Massapequa over a machine any day. If students and staff cooperate with school and safety rules, nobody will have to face the fear of swiping in or having to empty his pockets every day.
KC: What kind of changes have been made in the school district since you’ve been employed here?
Mr. Flynn: Before we were employed, security in the Massapequa School District was comprised of teachers and other school faculty. Since the beginning of the 2010-2011 school year, when we were employed by the district, we have replaced faculty with personnel trained for emergencies and observation. Since then, our personnel size has increased, and Massapequa can feel more assured of its safety.
KC: Could a replay of Chardon High School come to Massapequa?
Mr. Flynn: One common thing I read in all the reports of the school shooting said: “I never thought it could happen here.” Never say it’ll never happen here. But with the cooperation of the students and staff with our well trained security personnel, we can make Massapequa certainly ready for any potential danger.
Dr. Williams and head of security Don Flynn have made the situation at the school clear in terms of safety. Nothing is ever certain, but we are as well protected as we can possibly be. The security personnel and trained staff at MHS are well-equipped to prevent a tragedy, and with their assistance we can be sure that we are as safe as possible.