On Feb. 14, 17 students and staff members were killed during a school shooting at Marjory Douglas Stoneman High School in Parkland, Fla.
Since then, students at Carlmont have been on edge due to all the recent gun violence.
“I’m disgusted that there have been innocent children dying, ones with such promising futures,” Sofia Dell’aquila, a freshman, said. “No laws have been set in place to prevent [shootings]. Something has to be done before even more kids die.”
Carlmont has never have experienced a mass shooting, but that sometimes isn’t enough to keep students from feeling uneasy.
“I have felt a little on edge after all the recent school shootings. Carlmont is a safe place, but a shooting could happen at any time,” Elizabeth Kravtchenko, a sophomore, said.
Even though there are some students that feel Carlmont is a safe place, other students think that security could be improved.
“[Carlmont] makes it seem like they [have good security] with people always riding around on carts and security cameras, but their lack of attention to the less-meddlesome students show their actual security deficiency,” Dell’aquila said.
Dell’aquila isn’t the only one who feels like this, as Kravtchenko and many other students think that Carlmont could have better security as well.
“I’m not alone when I say that [the recent shootings] have definitely changed how I see our school. Every time there is a loud bang or someone knocks on the door, I jolt a bit more than I used too, and my heart skips a beat,” Alec Grogan-Crane, a senior, said. “It’s hard to feel safe right now when it’s so easy to attack a facility like a school that is so defenseless.”
Principal Ralph Crame recognized this spike in anxiety and as a result, he set up a Kid Power Workshop for staff and parents in order to help prepare them in the case of an emergency and to reduce fear among students.
The workshop was held on Wednesday, March 14.
However, in the event of a shooting, a person’s reactions are still unpredictable even with the training.
“We have had drills and practiced what we will do in the event of a school shooting, but no matter how much we train and practice, in the event of a true emergency, there will still be a kid on the loose with a gun,” Grogan-Crane said.