by Carol Keefer, Reporter

On February 16, 2017, Jim Thorpe High School had an ALICE drill to practice what would happen during an intruder lockdown. ALICE stands for Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, and Evacuate.

“In years prior, we would just sit in the corners of the classrooms and essentially wait for the intruders to break in and harm us. Now, we’re preparing ourselves for when an intruder breaks into the building, and how we would handle the situation,” said Lauren Gaudio, a freshman at Jim Thorpe High School.

In the past, the students and teachers would wait in corners of the classroom and wait for the drill to be over. Now, they are barricading doors and evacuating, if possible.

“I believe that moving to ALICE is a more positive and productive measure in dealing with an intruder than the old way in which we handled it. I hope that it never comes to be needed in Jim Thorpe or in any other school, but being proactive in dealing with the situation is much more beneficial. The old lockdown way was just to hide and lock up your door. I always felt like you were waiting and hoping more than anything else. ALICE gives us the chance to determine the outcome more than locking down did. Like I said, I hope that no one ever has to experience such an event, but looking to get out and have as many people get to safety as possible seems like a much better plan than sitting around and waiting for something bad to happen,” said Mr. Pascoe, a science teacher at Jim Thorpe High School.

The students and staff at Jim Thorpe High School are getting accustomed to this new way of handling an intruder situation, and they are looking forward to being even safer than they were in previous lockdowns.

“It was scary in the past without having anything but a lock keeping us and the intruders apart. I’m glad we’ve adopted this new way of approaching the situation. It feels safer being locked in the classrooms when we have things blocking the entryway. It’s also a nice feeling to know that the office personnel will keep us updated on the location of the intruder so we can make a run for it if the opportunity arises,” said freshman, Lauren Gaudio.

ALICE provides a different approach to an intruder situation, and many schools around the globe are adopting this approach and turning away from the old method of waiting it out. So, are things changing for better or for worse? Those involved are not really sure yet, but they can only assume that things are changing for the better.