Our Proposed Policies
Executive Summary
At Florence M. Gaudineer, we believe that our school would be safer if we had ID cards for students and staff. ID cards provide identification, gives information whether a student is lost, and increases security around the school. With ID cards, we can clearly identify if someone is a student, staff member, or visitor. If a crime happens on school grounds, students wearing ID’s can help identify the perpetrators as well as the possible victims. Security personnel can quickly spot the person who is not supposed to be there. There can be certain areas where only people with ID cards can be allowed to go, making school a more protected place. This is why we strongly advise the Springfield School District to require ID cards.
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Proposed Local Policy-ID Cards in Springfield Public Schools
1 - All students in 6,7, and 8th grades will be issued an identification card at the beginning of the school term. These cards must be carried daily.
2 -Students are to use their identification card to enter the building by scanning the barcode of the card at the scanner to opening the door.
3 - In the beginning of the year packet a security question must be answered in case students forget their cards.
4- If student does not have his/her card, they will not be permitted to enter the building until card is in hand or answer the security question.
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Advantages
The advantages of our policy are it would keep the students and faculty safe and we don’t need to worry about outside predators. Because they will not be able to unlock the building without the proper ID.
Possible Disadvantages
If the predator (shooter) isn’t coming from outside the building then the ID cards won’t do much help, except for track the last person in the classroom/building. If card is lost students will have to pay a $10 fee for a new card. We understand that there are people who can hack into the machines but why would someone try to hack into our 2,000-student district compared to other bigger school districts or bigger companies.
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Level of Government
The level would be local because it is only for our school district, not the state. The Springfield Board of Education makes the policies for the district. We would need to take it to the Springfield Board of Education. They would be responsible because its only for our district not the state.
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Constitutional Connection
The policy being proposed is constitutional because it’s not necessarily tracking the students attending our school, it’s for safety. They still have all of their freedom of speech rights. It doesn’t violate a person’s due process because they still have all of the freedom they want unless they plan on doing something bad to the school. It’s reasonable because everyone has to get an ID card not just certain people due to their skin color or race/religion. It does not violate the New Jersey Constitution because it is for children’s safety not any other reason. The New Jersey Constitution says that the state government will “provide for the friendliness and support of a thorough and efficient system of free public schools for the instruction of all children in the state between the ages of 5-18 years.” Our proposed policy will help our schools achieve the objective outlined in the state Constitution.
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Proposed State Policy: Mandatory Safety Devices in New Jersey Public Schools
Executive Summary
Since 2015, there has been on average one school shooting per week in the United States. It is unsafe for children to be in a public school where there are insufficient safety measures. Our goal is to tweak the laws in New Jersey to make students feel even safer at the building they will spend 35 hours a week in. Currently, there are minimal laws regarding required safety devices in New Jersey public schools, and we wish to change that. Laws adding safety devices are instrumental, because they will keep students and faculty safe, they prevent unwanted people from entering the building, and allow easier access for law enforcement authorities.
State Policy 1A: Protocols
Currently, most security protocols in our public schools are confidential. While we understand the reasoning, the citizens want to know that they are safe. There should be a way to reveal parts of this protocol to ensure safety, while keeping enough in secrecy that burglars and potential shooters could not figure out a way to bypass this procedure. Keeping the citizens in the know would calm us down from protesting school safety to our Boards of Education, and would still keep the buildings safe.
State Policy 1B: Panic Applications
A way to solve this issue in our state is with a panic application. A vast majority of the faculty have access to a cellular device or computer during regular class time. An app or website that is compatible with both phones and computers would be a method in resolving this task. There would only be two elements to the app. The first phase is making sure that a random student cannot access the application. Each independent county will set each teacher with an 8-digit password for this app, and once they enter their password, there will be a button they could press, which would alert the front office of all public district schools, as well as local law enforcement of anything that may occur, a shooter, medical emergency, or anything amiss. These would also ensure the safety of students if an emergency does occur.
State Policy 1C: Doors and ID Cards
Currently, all schools in the Springfield Public Schools district have hammer and bulletproof doors. We want to make this a statewide policy, in the rare case that someone outside the school has a gun capable of shooting through a door and hitting a student. Despite the fact that this is unlikely to occur, every precaution must be taken to ensure safety of students. We also want to bring upon ID cards to all students in middle and high schools. All doors would have an ID card reader that lets people in and out. Every card would have a unique barcode, and it will get rid of the need for sign in papers at schools. The office and principal would be able to see who clocks in and out, where they do it, and when.
Conclusion:
These safety precautions today are necessary toward a safer tomorrow. If at least some of these are not implemented, lives could be lost so to inadequate school safety standards. While it might cost some more money, the financial cost of these safeguards most definitively outweigh the human cost of a potential school shooter. People look to live in a safe environment. Any bad event that may occur would tarnish New Jersey’s reputation as to being a safe state. When this happens, New Jersey will lose current citizens as well as future leaders and therefore tax money that could go to school safety and other urgent state issues.
Possible Advantages
Some advantages of our policy include making a safer tomorrow by bringing mandatory panic applications and bulletproof doors to public schools. It would also reveal part of the school safety policy to make the citizens feel safer, but not enough that a gunman would know how to bypass it. Our citizens should be informed, and this is a great, safe way to do it.
Possible Disadvantages
Some disadvantages of our policy are the financial aspect, the cost to pay the software designer and to make the app, which would cost roughly $60,000. Secondly, the doors would cost about $2,250 per door, but these are necessities to keep students safe.
Level of Government (see How This Will Become a Law Chart Below)
The New Jersey Senate and General Assembly are responsible for proposing all of these policies. This is because our lawmakers can amend the State Constitution, and we need them to, in order to ensure the safety of our citizens. This would amend the Constitution by adding a clause about mandatory safety devices and protocols not already in the New Jersey Constitution.
Constitutional Connection
The New Jersey Statues Title 18A Section 18A:37-21 quotes, “A school district shall form a school safety team in each school in the district to develop, foster, and maintain a positive school climate by focusing on the on-going, systemic process and practices in the school… ..A school safety team shall meet at least two times per school year.” Our lawmakers passed this law, trying to make schools safer, and our policy would help the citizens and lawmakers to make schools even safer than this law did initially. The New Jersey Constitution Section IV quotes, “The Legislature shall provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of free public schools for the instruction of all the children in the State between the ages of five and eighteen years.” By passing this law, maintenance and support of the education system will be made better. It makes it safer and more comfortable which will lead to a better educational environment.
School Safety Film: Covers the door and window so that an intruder cannot see into the classroom.
Visit the Letters Section in Our Digital Portfolio to view the Letters we sent and the Letters of Support we received.
New Jersey State Senator for Springfield, Thomas Kean Jr.
Assemblyman Jon Bramnick
Representative for Springfield
Assemblywoman Munoz Representative for Springfield
In this photo, the object in it is a gun. The activities/words in the photo is a gun and a finger in the gun hole. From what I observed, three things that I have inferred from this photograph is that the creator is against gun violence, they want an end to gun violence/school shootings and they want people to understand that what they are doing is wrong. Some questions that this photograph raises in my mind are, why hasn’t school shootings stopped, and why has our government not done anything to prevent/stop them?
Federal Policy-Raise the Purchase Age For Firearms to 21
The United States Congress should increase the gun-purchasing age from 18 years of age to 21 years of age. This is because in the state of New Jersey this is already a law, but there are still many states that allow people as young as 18 to legally purchase a firearm. If this policy was put into effect in our federal government, then the amount of gun violence would decrease dramatically. This would be beneficial because many large retailers in America such as Walmart, L.L Bean, and Dick's Sporting Goods have raised their gun purchasing age from 18 to 21, based on customer feedback. If the U.S Federal Government were to realize that these retailers are basing their choices off of customer feedback they may realize that if this is what the majority of Americans want, the U.S Government could want to make this a Federal Law.
Advantages of Raising the Federal Gun Purchasing Age:
Raising the federal purchase age of firearms will make schools much safer. Nikolas Cruz is only 19 years old. If the federal purchase age of all firearms was 21 at the time, the Parkland shooting would've been less likely to have happened because Nikolas Cruz would have had to wait 2 more years.
Circumventing Legislative Resistance:
We will hold protests and speeches trying to convince the government officials opposed to this policy to support it.
Downsides of Regulatory Action:
There is a chance that this policy wouldn't decrease the gun violence rate. The policy might increase illegal activity, and underage people might be stealing or killing to get their hands on a gun.
The policy will make schools, students, and teachers much safer because anybody under 21 years of age wouldn’t be able to purchase and have assault weapons. Most school shooters are under the age of 21 and use assault weapons, so the amount of school shooters will decrease. Most states only educate students in public schools until the age of 21, so students wouldn’t be able to purchase an assault weapon legally.
Advantages:
This policy might increase gun violence rates in the country. Illegal activity and crime rates might rise in the country because anybody under 21 years of age might steal for a gun, kill for a gun, or purchase it illegally. 18, 19, and 20-year olds might be angry about the policy and try to purchase an assault weapon illegally. 18, 19, and 20-year olds might kill someone if the person they killed has an assault weapon. Also, we will have less people volunteering for the United States military and for the draft because 18, 19, and 20-year olds wouldn’t be able to own assault weapons.
Level of Government:
The federal government is responsible for carrying out our policy because we want a national law that allows only people at or above the age of 21 to purchase firearms. President Donald Trump, a part of the Executive Branch of the government, wants the gun purchasing age to be raised to 21. The Executive Branch will enforce the policy. Senators and members of the House of Representatives have the power to propose the policy and pass it. The United States Supreme Court, or the Judicial Branch of the government, determine if it is constitutional.
Constitutional Connection:
The policy being proposed is constitutional because doesn’t violate any of the people’s Second Amendment rights. Our policy doesn’t interfere with a person’s freedom or beliefs because we will still allow the people to have guns, but they will only be able to purchase guns at or above the age of 21. Our policy doesn’t place unreasonable and unfair limits on a person’s rights because people aren’t allowed to purchase alcohol at the age of 18. The purchasing age of firearms and alcohol would both be 21 if the policy is accepted. It is not violating anybody’s rights. The Second Amendment to the Constitution is not being violated because people will still be able to bear arms, but just at or above the age of 21. This policy doesn’t discriminate because it applies to all American citizens. School safety is an issue all over the country, and raising the federal purchasing age of all firearms will help keep schools safer.
