Archived News Item

New BHS Policy

Lately Berkeley High School has been enforcing a stricter policy with lockers and personal belongings in them. If a security guard finds a locker to be suspicious in any way he has been ordered to open that locker without the student’s permission and search through their belongings for any incriminating evidence. Berkeley High has let their actions speak for their words by pulling kids out of their classrooms and opening their lockers in front of them instead of issuing an actual school wide warning. This has garnered several complaints from some of my fellow classmates that I talked to about this topic. Some complained that Berkeley High wasn’t being fair in not issuing a warning to students before they began enforcing the policy. Others complained that it was a breech of a student’s individuality and freedom. I’m going to have to play the devil’s advocate here and say that Berkeley High has done nothing wrong in enforcing this policy in the way they did. Berkeley High is not breeching an individual’s freedom and individuality unless they were doing random searches with nothing to pique their suspicion. Suspicion is the key word and no security guard is allowed to break into a student’s locker unless he has a fairly clear reason to be suspicious about that locker and as long as that’s happening then students at Berkeley High don’t have a valid argument. While I will criticize Berkeley High by never issuing a warning I will say that student’s who have gotten caught with illegal substances or weapons in their lockers are stupid for not being more careful. If they were actually bright then they would hold their illegal substances in a place where they had possession of it at all time. It’s just like my current refusal to put my I-pod, wallet or keys in my locker for the fear of people getting in there and going through my valuable stuff.

— Josh