By Mariella Bishop
Twice in two weeks, the Lovett School went into lockdown, only to discover they were false alarms.
Starting in August, Lovett began using a new security system, called Centegix, which involves key cards that, when pressed three times, alert an administrator that a teacher needs assistance, and when pressed more than eight times, initiate a full campus lockdown.
While this is a smart idea to spread news quickly and quietly, it turns out there’s room for things to go wrong.
The key cards have a simple button on the front, which sits on every teacher’s lanyard, so it’s easily accessible should they need to call for help or a lockdown. Unfortunately, teachers didn’t always wear them on their lanyards as they were supposed to. Mr Boswell told me that a teacher had the keycard in their wallet, which could have potentially activated the first lockdown.
Apparently, carrying the wallet underneath their arm while walking with other supplies was enough to press the card’s button over nine times.
Although it was a false alarm, Mr. Boswell acknowledged that the experience was still worrisome, as school had just let out, meaning kids, teachers, and even parents were scattered across the Lovett campus.
“It was maybe 15 minutes after school let out, so you have the lower school kids outside waiting for pick up,” he said. “There’s parents waiting in the carpool line, middle school and upper school are scattered anywhere on the campus, from the pond to the athletic fields. Kids were everywhere, so it was very difficult to alert everyone when they were all in such isolated places.”
There were also Lovett staff members out on the football field working on decorating for homecoming, meaning that they were in a very open space where no one would be able to alert them if it weren’t for our phones.
Thanks to our quick security team and fast-thinking teachers, the student body was informed of what was happening and quickly moved to safety. Freshman Sophia Adamo said that some girls were in the locker room and weren’t aware of what was happening at the time. Additionally, because there weren’t teachers in some hallways, freshman Ella Palmer took matters into her own hands and hid with another person.
It was scary for many people since nobody was aware that it was an accident. Teachers needed to react immediately, assuming it was real, until they found out that it was a false alarm about 10 minutes later.
The next day, there was an in-school fire drill, and then the campus seemed to settle down. That peace didn’t last long, though. Friday brought another lockdown, this time during upper school lunch.
Students were again scattered across the cafeteria, courtyard, and hallways, all enjoying their meals without being aware of the lockdown. Yes, the lights flash red in the hallways and alert people within the building, but it can be tricky to spot or hear in certain places, especially when eating outside.
Once again, the system was triggered by a badge being carried with the button exposed.
Despite students being dispersed throughout the upper school, teachers took swift and diligent action to ensure everyone’s safety, utilizing Google Chat for communication. Those eating outside were rushed into the cafeteria to head to the black box, and those in the library, like freshmen Angelina Ricker, Peter Bernardino, and Henry Thompson, were taken to the storage room and stayed deadly silent.
While most students were enjoying their lunch when the alarm went off, some students, like senior Mitchell Deutsch, were in other upper school rooms, such as college counseling. He said that he’d just finished a meeting with his counselor and was about to head out when it happened. He said Mr. Albano and Ms. Friedman were together in the room at the time. Although none of them were scared, they lowered the blinds and turned off the lights while remaining quiet. He claimed he wasn’t worried, considering neither of his teachers was, so he knew things would be okay.
Once the lockdown ended, school continued. Students were still a little shaken up, but not enough to miss a quiz. Mr. Boswell said he was very proud of how quiet the upper school became once the lockdown began.
“It was deadly quiet, probably the quietest the upper school had ever been,” he added.
He pointed out that our Security team worked quickly and effectively to clear the false alarm as quickly as possible, “ensuring everyone was safe before calling ‘all clear.’”
“In total, the lockdown took 12 minutes,” he said, “which in our case is pretty darn fast.”
Both times were quite different but still pretty scary, especially since the majority of the students thought it was real. However, Mr. Boswell was pleased with how diligently the students followed directions, as if it were a true lockdown. He said that they did an excellent job in case it was a true lockdown emergency.
Thankfully, both times were false alarms, caused by accidents, and everyone remained patient. You haven’t experienced true patience until you’ve waited out a 12-minute lockdown with a rumbling stomach.
Hopefully, as the year progresses, these accidents will be less common for the Lovett School. Mr. Boswell explained that they’re working on ways to prevent false alarms and activations, such as providing teachers with a clear case to store the key cards. Apparently, these cases will help to prevent the button from being pressed by accident.
One positive outcome is that admin, faculty, and students have discovered they can handle a little chaos with teamwork. With quick-thinking teachers, alert security, and students who know how to follow directions, the campus is in good hands.
Another sort-of positive outcome: we have an interesting story to tell afterward. After all, these events remind us that Lovett students and staff are resilient, adaptable, and well-equipped to face whatever the school year throws their way.
