At LS, staff work hard to ensure that all students are safe. When looking at the effectiveness of the efforts made to guarantee the well-being of everyone at LSRHS, student opinions are mixed. Students and staff work through certain situations during drills that are meant to prepare members of the LSRHS community for any dangerous circumstances at school. Many students are comfortable doing these drills. However, for some students the situations are very concerning. Students are worried about the reasons why we have to participate in the drills, such as an active school shooter. Massachusetts has strict gun laws, and most problems involving guns at school occur in the more southern states (School Shootings in the US: Fast Facts, CNN). 

It is understandable that students worry about the rise in school shootings throughout the country. After these drills, and anytime during the school year, counseling is offered to LS students. Students can access counseling by visiting the counseling suite (B336). When asking students what specifically makes them feel unsafe at school, if anything, a common answer was windows. Some students worry about an intruder’s ability to see into almost any classroom or space at LS. Another reason students are concerned about their safety is the inability to reach their cellphones in the case of an emergency. Even though the cell phone policy is in place to prevent phone usage at LS, students argue that in the event of an urgent situation contacting loved ones to let them know that they are safe would not be possible if their cellphones are nowhere close to their person. 

The majority of students recognize that the caring teachers and Officer Mangano (School Resource Officer) work to ensure that LS is a safe place everyday. Students at LS realize how fortunate they are to have such involved staff as their mentors.