School shootings: Plans needed for panic prevention

By Kate Schessler
George Washington High School

Imagine quietly sitting in history class, counting the seconds until the bell rings. Suddenly a staccato BANG! BANG! BANG! replaces the bell. Students panic and teachers shriek. Classroom doors fling open, and pandemonium ensues as everyone stampedes through halls and down the stairs trying to escape.

BANG! BANG! BANG! More fatal shots are fired into the panicked crowd. Glass shatters. People fall. All are victims of a shooter’s rage and their own fear.

These unfortunate students and staff members are also victims of poor planning to deal with the possibility of a school shooting or other violent incident. Terrible occurrences like these happen all too frequently in schools, universities and workplaces across the country, but not all institutions have a plan in place to deal with them. In the above scenario, no one learned the correct procedures to protect themselves from a school shooting.

Public and private schools are required by law under the West Virginia Safe Schools Act to conduct fire, disaster and intruder drills for the orderly evacuation of students and staff. Fire marshals and school officials monitor the plan and escape routes and evaluate the drills.

Since Columbine, many schools across the nation have developed intruder and school violence protocols. At Columbine, the gunmen shot several terror-stricken students as they moved through the hallways. But had students not been in the halls, the damage done by the shooters might have been less severe.

Two of the most common school safety procedures are lockdowns, where students are kept inside their classrooms with the doors locked and the windows sealed until told otherwise by a teacher or the authorities, and shelter-in-place, which is the same except that students are all moved to one location. (In West Virginia, shelter-in-place is also used in the event of a chemical spill or leak.)

Classroom doors lock from both the inside and outside, but unlocking the door from the outside requires a key. This allows students and teachers easy exit in case of fire or other emergency but still offers protection from intruders.

All classrooms at George Washington High School are equipped with panic buttons. Once pressed, the button notifies the office of an intruder or problem. Then, the office locks down the room or wing. This allows safe escape for students in other areas of the building.

“We have a planned escape route for students and faculty. They exit the building and walk [to a designated area nearby]. There, police, rescue units and parents are notified. This plan has been in effect since before Columbine,” said GW counselor Kackie Eller.

In April, shortly after the shootings at Virginia Tech, John Adams Middle School students and teachers tested their school violence safety plan for real. Around 12:30 p.m. one day, teachers found what looked like bullet holes in the back school doors. Shortly after that, the vice principal announced a lockdown.

“We were locked down for about two hours,” recalled George Washington freshman Ansh Kumar, who attended John Adams at the time.

“It was scary. No one knew what happened. My teacher, Mrs. Williams, turned off the lights, closed the blinds and locked all doors and windows to our portable. My class and I passed the time talking but secretly worrying.

“Later, the vice principal announced the lockdown ended. Everyone was relieved. Although no gunman was inside the school, I felt safe knowing our school had a security plan.”

Nationwide, all schools should implement plans and protocols to deal with school intruders and violence. Properly implemented, with drills and disclosure of the procedures, these plans will prevent panic and ultimately save lives. The harsh realities of the world we live in require us all to be prepared.