Bars on the windows

Expanded metal grating added for safety

STORY BY VANESSA ROMERO

Students may have noticed bars on the windows on a set of double doors in EHS. The idea of the bars may be confusing for some students, and have them question if they think they’re beneficial or not. The main reason behind it includes one thing: Precaution.

Ron Abel, principal of Eudora High School, likes the idea of the safety bars on the window. He said the bars are there for protection reasons. They plan on getting more for the other side in the freshman and sophomore corridor. Abel explained that they might not be appealing to the eye, but that it will still be useful in certain situations.

Joe Zlatnik, assistant principal of Eudora High School, also enjoys the idea of the safety bars on the window. Zlatnik said the bars are for the “What If” scenario –  if it ever occurs. They plan on adding some more protection around the school like the door buzzers they installed last year. School safety and preventing gun violence has been a major issue for school districts across the country in recent years, and the extra layer of metal is there to keep students safe in the event of a mass shooting or similar event. 

Marissa Bulleigh, Soph., doesn’t think we need the bars.

“It’s so stupid” she said, loudly. 

She feels that if anything were to happen to our school, we would be able to handle it without the bars. She understands that the bars are on the window for protection reasons, but she still thinks we won’t need them. 

Drew Greener, Soph., thinks the bars on the windows are unnecessary. He thinks the bars must have actually been put there so no one breaks the windows. 

“Doesn’t serve a purpose,” Greener said. 

He didn’t think about the bars being there for protection, but for more of the purpose of protecting the glass if clumsy teenagers were roughhousing nearby.

Emily Snyder, Fr., believes the bars would be useful in some situations to keep intruders out. Even though she has that opinion, she doesn’t think we would ever have an intruder. She said the same phrase as most other students: “It’s stupid.” She doesn’t think we should have the bars there.

“Children should protect themselves,” Snyder said. 

Reaghan Transmeier, Soph., thinks the administration is assuming bad things will happen to our school. She thinks it is annoying and unneeded. She believes the bars are making people afraid that something will happen to our school.

  “It makes people think something bad will happen,” Transmeier said. 

Kelsey Kwiatkowski, Soph., thinks the bars are “dumb.” She doesn’t understand why they are there. 

“It’s a prison now…” Kwiatkowski said. 

Alex Watkins, Soph., has the same opinion about the bars. He doesn’t understand why we have them since the bars are on “glass [that] is like an inch think.” He feels like having the expanded metal in such a visible place scares people unnecessarily. 

Abby Watson, Soph., passed us during the interview and Alex Watkins asked her for her thoughts on the subject.

She told him, “It’s sketchy, dude.” 

Similarly, Ashton Olson, Soph., doesn’t see the point of the bars on the window. 

“It’s unnecessary,” Olson said. 

He examined the bars and window, near the Junior and Senior pod. 

“I don’t think anyone would try and get through,” he said.