Be safe, be responsible, be respectful and do it…the Charger Way, but are we really safe at school?

School safety has been a big concern ever since the terrorist attacks in Paris that killed innocent people, school shootings at Sandy Hook elementary in 2012 and Columbine High school in 1999, that killed a total of 39 people and wounded many more, and school threats at Bullitt Central High school and North Bullitt High school and many more schools in our country.

The safety of our school is taken seriously by students, staff, and parents in charger nation. In the aftermath of the North Bullitt and Bullitt Central threats, our school has not taken any new precautions because principal, Willie Foster, has faith in the students at East.

“Typically when students see something or hear something that makes them uncomfortable, they would say something pretty quick,” said Foster.

Every day Officer Rucker, 17 year veteran of the Bullitt County Sheriff’s department, walks the halls and patrols the parking lot for the safety of the students and staff.

“My job as a school resource officer means that I’m here as a police officer for the school, to handle any type of criminal matter, patrol  the school and the parking lot. Schools anymore have become more of a campus but primarily my job is to keep the students safe,” said Officer Rucker. High schools in America have many buildings and facilities [football fields, soccer fields, parking lots, gyms] that are laid out like a college campus and keeping the students and staff safe with the large area is a job for people like officer Rucker and other school resource officers around the country. Thousands of school resource officers patrol schools all across the country.

So far this school year, we have heard about bomb threats at North Bullitt and Bullitt Central (BC). In October, 2015, a threat on social media stated that North Bullitt would blow up on Friday. Another similar note was found by a teacher in the back of a classroom at North Bullitt. At Bullitt Central in October of 2015, a note was found, threatening to turn the school to rubble on Friday. The note at BC was found in the boys bathroom around noon. The threats at both high schools resulted in low attendance. Police were on heightened alert all week and no bomb was found at either school. “I think what we have been seeing lately is copy cat threats,” said Foster. Students and staff continue to be aware of safety. On December 17th, BE had a bomb threat found in the gym. Foster sent out an email to parents and responded to the threat with a ‘soft lockdown’ for about an hour while Mount Washington police searched the school and made sure the school was safe.

“Our office has an open-door policy where we encourage students to be advocates for safety and our first priority is, and will be, student safety,” said Foster in the email.

The student parking lot is another important area for Foster and Officer Rucker. “We supervise students when they enter and leave everyday, we use canine services periodically throughout the year, our school resource officer drives through and monitors our parking lot as we come and go and we don’t let students leave during the day,” said Foster.

BE senior, Tabitha Laslie, parks in the student parking lot. “Some students are safe while others are nowhere near safe,” said Laslie.

“The safety procedures are good enough to keep me alive,” said Laslie.

While the world has been attacked and scared by others; our school has taken steps to continue to keep the students and staff safe. With the closely watch of Officer Rucker, walking down the hallways, and the leadership of Foster, East continues to be a safe school that thrives to do it…….the Charger Way.