As students returned to LFHS this fall, they were greeted with a new policy: everyone in the building would be required to wear their school-issued IDs on lanyards throughout the day. The implementation of this new protocol currently has students across all grades asking, “Why the sudden change?”
According to the Assistant Director of Security and Safety, Mr. Rick Anderson, the ID policy reflects the school’s commitment to creating a safe environment.
“The LFHS student ID policy ensures a secure and positive learning atmosphere for all students, staff, and visitors,” Mr. Anderson said. “Visible ID cards make it easier to identify students and clearly distinguish who is authorized to be on campus––helping staff, students, and security officers quickly recognize visitors or unauthorized individuals.”
In an effort to gain student input on the policy, school officials and security personnel met with Student Body President Josie Irvin this summer. They explained that with the ongoing construction in and around the school, security has become an even greater priority for the administration.
“Having to wear IDs this year is definitely a big change for everyone,” Irvin said. “It is going to take time for students to get used to bringing them everyday, but I do understand the importance of being able to identify students––especially while construction is underway and many outside workers will be coming in and out of the building,” Irvin said. 
While the reasoning behind the policy is clear, many students will need time to adapt. The announcement, sent shortly before the start of the school year, left students having to quickly accept the new expectations. In their final year at LFHS, the introduction of the ID policy came as a surprise to many seniors.
“It’s definitely an adjustment since we haven’t had to wear ID’s throughout our time at LFHS. I’ve already had a couple mornings where I forgot my lanyard at home,” senior Callum Morrison said.
To support the transition, the school provides temporary IDs as a placeholder for students who forget or lose their lanyards. These are available to students upon entering the building in the morning and are expected to be returned by the end of the day.
“It has been challenging to get some of the temporary ID’s back at the end of each day, but we have a system to track who has not been returning the temporary ID’s and have been reaching out to those students,” Mr. Anderson said.
Additionally, some underclassmen have addressed other practical concerns they’ve seen.
“A lot of people have started to fidget with their lanyards during class––I find myself doing it too––which can be distracting because they make a loud sound,” sophomore Grace Lombardi said.
Although some adjustments may be needed to streamline the process, administering lanyards has brought several notable advantages. Wearing lanyards provides quicker access to students’ ID cards; this allows students to buy snacks from the Grind, scan into resource help centers, and have seniors leave school for lunch in a more efficient manner.
Mr. Anderson shares his thoughts on the new policy, expressing confidence that it is necessary to enforce and already demonstrating success.
“I can’t speak for students, as I understand it is a major shift and can be challenging for some due to comfort issues, social stigma, forgetfulness, lack of perceived value, or resistance to authority. However, over the first few days, I am truly impressed by the effort shown, with approximately 95% of students successfully wearing their lanyards,” Mr. Anderson said.
Ultimately, the primary goal of requiring lanyards with IDs is to ensure the safety and security of everyone at the school; the administration’s biggest hope is that wearing them will become second nature for both students and staff in the near future.
