By Ethan Walshe
Editor-in-Chief
Westford Academy students were informed of upcoming security drills Friday in a joint presentation by Dean Bob Ware and Student Resource Officer Detective Justin Agraz.
In the year since the tragic Newtown Massacre, WA and schools across the country have had an increased focus on school security. The Ghostwriter has reported on this issue several times. Previously, Ware had spoken of introducing ALICE, an improved system of crisis response in a school setting. On Friday afternoon, WA students were formally introduced to the program.
In a letter posted on the WA Website, principal Jim Antonelli said “[s]chool safety is paramount. We have been witness to too many senseless school shootings over the last fifteen years, and schools must have safety procedures in place to limit any potential injury.”
The presentation consisted of explaining recent trends away from the common “Lockdown” procedures that gained popularity after the Columbine High School Shooting of 1999 while simultaneously promoting the new ALICE program. While the Lockdown method seemed to be effective because of elements of control, command, and convenience for students and faculty, the unfortunate reality was that it made anyone in the building an “easy target.”
On Friday, February 14 students will be engaging in security training drills from 12:30 to 1:55 to practice the new ALICE program. While the event will be similar to what faculty experienced last May, this time there will be no one playing the role of an active shooter in the building. Instead, students will be practicing lockdown, evacuation and barricading procedures.
Following the security drills next Friday, each grade will gather to discuss the day’s events as a group.
“I think we should probably practice protocol just in case. It avoids the whole sitting duck [mentality],” said sophomore Jonathan Townsend.
One of the primary reasons that WA has chosen to enact ALICE – which stands for Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, and Evacuate – is that it provides students and faculty with choices. The idea here is that if necessary, students and faculty will no longer be confined to the corner of a classroom waiting for whatever crisis is currently underway to pass. Instead, they are encouraged to barricade doors, arm themselves to counter attack with whatever is available, be it a stapler, backpack, or even a desk, or evacuate the building if it is safe to do so.
Det. Agraz also offered some alarming statistics on recent school shootings, including the Virginia Tech Massacre of 2007, wherein students who effectively barricaded their classrooms or evacuated were able to survive while their classmates who did not do so were tragically killed.
Another key feature of ALICE is the real time updates that will be offered during any kind of crisis situation. In the unlikely event of a school shooter being in the building, someone will be on the intercom informing students and faculty as to his or her whereabouts in the building, which can aid in good decision making, such as whether or not it is safe to evacuate.
“I think it’s pretty cool. It’s a nice new way to keep students safe,” said senior Robbie Grip.
This program was introduced to parents in an email distributed by Antonelli. Parents seem to be incredibly supportive of the new measures.
“I think it’s wonderful … it’s long overdue. I think what happens is people feel comfortable in suburban communities … they feel like it’s never going to happen here so why should we worry about it? … This is where we need to be prepared,” said Janice Taranto, whose daughter is a sophomore.
Her thoughts were echoed by Bill Eaton, a parent of a senior and a freshman at WA.
“I think it’s positive. If someone’s going to [enter the building with a gun] and they think they’re going to be fought back against they may be less apt to do something, not walking into a school full of lambs walking into a school full of bulls may be different,” he said.