After a Legacy student allegedly brought a gun on a school trip and was arrested, district administrators added a bag policy for overnight trips. Students are now required to go through Evolv bag checks before boarding the bus or vehicle. The district implemented these changes early this month to ensure safety.

“I think it’ll at least deter some bad or potentially harmful situations,” head volleyball coach Amanda Shingleton said. “If the system is effective, then it should make people feel confident and safe.”

Before going on an overnight trip students now must walk their bags through the Evolv system to check for any weapons or harmful materials. This adds a layer of security to school trips for staff and students.

“I feel like it’s one extra step, but hopefully it’ll be easy and keep people from bringing things they shouldn’t bring on trips,” theater teacher Jeremy Ferman said. “But I think that safer is better.”  

These extra precautions help the schools within the district to stay on top of their safety and security measures. These precautions keep the students safe when the adults supervise them, and even add extra security when left unsupervised.

“I hope that it makes everybody know that they’re safe and everybody’s got what they need on the trip and nothing they don’t,” Principal Stephanie Bonneau said. “We have good students that make wise decisions and just not bring anything they’re not supposed to bring.”

“I think some people might feel like it’s invading their privacy especially on an overnight trip when you’re looking through their personal things,” Coach Shingleton said, “but if it’s not done in a public format and displayed in front of other people it will be ok.”

While these changes heighten the safety of travelers, the details will affect traveling. If a trip begins right after school, students will have to leave class earlier causing them to miss out on instructional time.

“When it’s time for us to go it is an extra kind of logistical step,” Mr. Ferman said. “Planning ahead and giving yourself enough time to pull [students] out an hour before we leave. They’re just missing some more class, so they have to make sure they plan ahead for that too.” 

These new procedures will not take place during the normal Evolv bag checks. They will either take place in a separate place of the school such as the gym, or will take place during the school day. 

“I think that anything we do in the building or outside of the building to help our students, our parents and our faculty and staff be safer and feel safer is a good thing,” Dr. Bonneau said. “It’s just adjusting to the new procedures and communication, it’s really not that disruptive.”

MISD safety and security administrators are always looking for ways to adjust and improve safety measures. 

“I think it’s great,” Coach Shingleton said. “Anything that provides a little peace of mind or extra element of safety to anyone, fan, spectator, player, coach, anybody that’s in attendance for an event is nice to have.”