Magnet Central: Weekly Campus & Magnet Fodder

Topic of Discussion this Week: ID Debate

After a short hiatus due to (as I gather) some sort of a printing problem at the beginning of the year, most of Magnet and the rest of campus now has their Identification badges that must be worn around all students' necks at all times, as per campus & Magnet policy. It has been advocated that the use of ID's will promote the safety of our school, especially after the terrorist attack in the Russian school some time ago and the constant threat of intruders to our campus.

Of course, the all-important question must be raised before we determine the fate of our identification card and whether it should be used or not. Is our campus truly safer as a result of the IDs? I know those within the administration will argue to know end that it is, but I will use one personal anecdote that one might call a bit contradictory to that assumption say the least.

Not more than a few weeks ago, we received two visitors at Magnet who I know personally and would not dare disclose any parts of their names online, for their sake. One of the visitors was a former student of one of our schools and was of course admitted to the school as are most other alumni, but what was most troubling was the other visitor. He/she was a current student in high school who was posing as a college student in order to walk around our campus along with this college student. Not only was this statement accepted, but not even basic identification from any college was required for the excuse to fly. The student had been cutting his/her local high school that day and had tagged along with the other college student on a trip of some sorts.

This situation raises a whole lot of questions about the safety of Magnet. If any of the campus alumni are allowed to bring their own friends or guests inside the school, then what is stopping them from bringing someone in the building who would be potentially dangerous to the students inside. Regardless of how the student may have acted while on campus, they may have fallen in with the wrong crowd so to speak, and the possible consequences of this are quite dire, and do not really need mentioning of.

Is the campus really safe as a result of ID's? Absolutely not. Is it safer with these ID's? I certainly think so, but only during school hours when ID's are mandated to be worn. After school there is way too much leeway that could lead to security breaches. I advocate ID's all the time, although many may vehemently argue against me. Of course the first and most important thing to do is to begin fully requiring students to wear ID's at all times through the careful use of hall monitors and the training of teachers to take away participation points and reprimanding students.

I know this isn't what anyone wants to hear, but it's my opinion.

Kevin