On April 14th, every student at LCMS got a surprise when they entered the school campus that morning. For many days, students had noticed red lines being painted on the courtyard, though no one knew why. Then, one morning, there was an announcement on the speakers that all students had to stay within the red lines before school started. No one said how long or why. So what is the actual reason for this new rule?
Since the beginning of the school year, school administration had been seeing students crowd the building doorways and stand on the stairs before the bell rings, making it hard for teachers, parents, and students to enter the buildings before school for meetings and more. Principal Laudani said, “We decided to add the red lines to give students a visual” of what our protocols are before the bell rings each morning.
Though this new rule promotes the safety of the school and students, many Panthers were irritated by it. Seventh grader, Owen Vargas, noticed a surprising uprising of his fellow students, and started a petition to change the rule.
“While this new rule does yield some benefits, it also makes it harder to get into the buildings when the bell rings. People start flooding the stairs and doors, and it will only take someone getting shoved the wrong way before someone else throws punches and starts a fight,” Owen said.
Starting his petition on April 16th, two days after the rule was put in place, word about it immediately spread through the whole school. “I wanted Dr. Laudani to see the petition and know what the school and I are trying to do,” Owen said.
Dr. Laudani met with Owen and Anthony Penn, the Student Government President, to discuss the petition and hear what students were saying around Chiles. Anthony and Owen stated their case, and by the end of the meeting, Dr. Laudani and the two students understood both sides of the argument.
“I feel like Dr. Laudani’s point of view was coming from a good place, but I wish we could incorporate more of the students’ perspectives on the issue,” Anthony said.
After everything, the administration and Dr. Laudani have said that the red lines rule will be permanent, as it’s necessary for safety on our campus.
