Carson Barnes

New weapons detectors were installed this morning through a pilot program required by Superintendent Dr. Michelle C. Reid after an incident at West Potomac High School. “These threats [have] only happened once, but you can never really know when [it will happen],” junior Laura Moreno Hernandez said. “I think this precaution, if we get used to it, will be [fine]. It’s better to be safe than sorry.”

This morning, Jefferson students walked into the building with weapons detection systems at every door, instructed to take out all laptops, binders and other objects that may set off the detectors.

“[The weapon detectors] are starting [on] the first day of school. Today was just for us to [see] how we can use them and what we can do differently starting next year,” safety and security specialist Frank McNulty said.

Students were not provided a notice prior to the installation of these detectors, nor were they told that the doors of the school would not be open until 8 a.m. This led to several students waiting outside of the doors of the school, some even as early as 7:30 a.m.

“I think it’s fair for them to [have] these because of safety reasons,” junior Laura Moreno Hernandez said. “It’s fair for them to have these at every high school, but I feel like the Jefferson community has proved to not need it.”

Some students were also stopped due to certain items in their backpacks.

“I don’t think anyone thought it was a threat or anything,” sophomore Jack Gao said. “It was more of just following procedures. It was my notebook.”

As today was just a pilot, there may be changes happening to the logistics of the system happening next school year.

“Today was just a soft opening,” McNulty said. “It was just to see how to do it and how we need to do it [next year] and position things. We knew we had exams today, so we just [stopped it after some time] to make sure everybody got in the school [on time]. Once school starts next year, it’ll [last] until everybody gets in.”