By Valendy Pierre
Many people use the phrase, “guns don’t kill people, people kill people.” This can be true in some cases, depending on how you 
view things. Theatre teacher, Ms. Miner, brought to attention that, “if he had a hunting rifle, 17 people would not have been dead.” The code red procedures in place are quite simple: lock the door, turn off any form of lighting, and hide. This could be effective until a former student decides to come and fire at the school, knowing exactly where students and teachers would hide. That was the case during the mass school shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. The shooter, having gone through the same drill during his time of attending the school, used it against the students and staff of the Parkland school during the shooting. It is sad to say that events like this can’t be entirely avoided— it may happen anywhere. How can schools, like Apopka High School, avoid such a tragedy?
Some staff members believe that this [Code Red] is the best we can do at the moment, and let our officers do their jobs. Though she does believe there are things she can do differently, due to the structure of her classroom, Ms. Miner puts her faith in the professionals to do their job as much as possible. “For my students, I have alternative plans to get them to a safer place.” In contrast, a few teachers, such as Mr. Wagner, believe that the procedures aren’t entirely effective on their own. “I don’t think they are effective—they’re bland,” Wagner stated when asked for his opinion on the lockdown drill. Officer Lee, one of our current SRO explained that Code Red could either hurt you or help, depending really on where you are. It is harder to hit a moving target than a laying target. If a shooter is in your hallway, they would want you to go through the lockdown procedure. “Our theory in law enforcement though— if you had a shooter somewhere and let’s say you’re on the first floor and your classroom had an exterior window, we would say I wouldn’t want to lock down and lay down there,” he explained. “If ever have to opportunity to escape or run, you always should.” Drills were not created just to be in place, but to give students and teachers the opportunity to train themselves so they know what to do in an incident such as a shooting. It is important that we take these drills seriously.
Over the years, there has been several proposals from staff, parents, and students on ways to make school safe. People have insisted that schools should have gates, more armed guards, metal detectors, and my personal favorite, armed staff members. On a positive note, Apopka has recently put up gates around the front of the campus. This will help prevent outsiders from gaining easy access to campus. There is no major problem with having more armed professionals on campus, but the issue with this is funding. The administration can fund unimportant things like tours, but when it comes to the safety of our citizens, officials say they “can’t afford it.” The same excuse is used for metal detectors. Though it may help us in the long run, we still “can’t afford them.” Some people proposed that we need to have armed teachers to protect their classrooms. The 2nd Amendment gives you the right to bear arms, but that right is stripped from them when they step foot on campus.
Most people aren’t necessarily opposed to the proposals except one. That is, of course, arming staff members. “The day we arm teachers here is the day I quit— it is unsafe beyond measure,” exclaimed Ms. Miner when asked how she felt about the idea of arming teachers. “It is just adding fuel to a fire,” Even I believe that arming teachers would be a great risk we should not be willing to take. Regardless, if the weapon is locked up, arming the staff will build up the question the safety of the students and other staff members. Chemistry teacher Mr. Klenk mentions that the idea of arming teachers would be absurd. “We are in the business to teach-not to shoot,” he said. “If you want to be armed, we can go into the police force.” Klenk is a man who is willing to take a bullet for his students. Disagreeing with the idea of armed teachers does not mean you are opposed to guns, but care for the safety of the student body and other staff members. It is just too risky.
Previously, Apopka has had three security guards, we now have five. There has been a fence put up front where there has been traffic coming on and off campus. There are some things we have not done that need to be addressed, but this a start. Apopka has been good at keeping the students and staff safe in any circumstance. Proud principle Mr. Arnold is trying his best to get things done, but it is the people above him who make the calls on what is done at the schools. All we can do is work together as a whole to get their attention.
Like Mr. Klenk said, “If you want to be safe, you got to do it right.” If this means funding metal detectors, then we should consider it. I’d rather the school look like a prison and be safe than constantly be fearing for my life, never knowing when someone with a gun could walk in.