Every season, Atlanta’s bipolar weather catches its citizens by surprise and waiting isn’t something many want to do, but when it’s due to the school’s security it’s almost a given. When there’s a choice between backpacks digging in your chest, and doors constantly slamming in your face, students can agree that the bus lane bag check is not systematically superior to the carpool bag check.
Every morning for 180 days students have to pass the metal detectors that grace the front and back of the school to enter NAHS. As someone who has experienced both, the lack of speed at the bus loop creates massive congestion, while the carpool flows with swiftness. Population is a big factor in the bus loop’s downfall when it comes to its speed and longer wait times, while the carpool bag check is used by a significantly smaller amount of students. Given its smaller size, the carpool bag check rarely has to worry about the excessive pushing that graces the bus bag check.
The consistency of carpool trumps the bus bag checks, which might be a result of the school’s attention being more on the front of the school. The school must try to continuously evaluate and adjust its security measures to create a balance between ensuring safety and minimizing inconvenience for the bus loop. Another fascinating discrepancy between the two security checks is the difference in the materials that supposedly set off the metal detectors. We are urged to take out items in our bags that may obstruct the sensors. Carpool asks you to take out your computer, umbrellas, glass cases, binders, metal water bottles, and sometimes big thermoses. However, bus loop only asks for metal water bottles, computers, and sometimes binders, or utensils. It begs the question do they slack on proper security checks because they know the immense amount of students takes longer to check?
As schools strive to balance security protocols with the need for expeditious processes, there is a growing call for closer examination and potential enhancements in the effectiveness of these security measures. Administrators and students shouldn’t start their day off with added stress, but my question remains is there intention in the contrast of bag checks, and if so doesn’t that deplete the fact of doing them in the first place?
