Wednesday, five Warsaw Community High School students, selected by the administration, were asked what they think about the student ID tags. Not all of them were happy about the lanyards.

"I just don't like everyone knowing who I am," said junior Natasha Galloway. "If they want to know, they can ask." She said it is an invasion of her privacy.

"I'm not sure how long students will want to wear them and teachers will enforce (wearing them)," said senior Kyle Masur. However, he said, it will probably improve school security.

"It has positive and negative effects," said senior Beth Denlinger. The positive is that it provides more security. The negative, she said, is that the administration is too strict about them. She would prefer it if the IDs were clip-ons or a card she could carry in her purse or wallet.

"I think," said senior Kelsi Foreman, "that it may be a small inconvenience," but it's being blown out of proportion.

"It's better than metal detectors," said Masur. "I like it. It shows the administration is committed to us."

Senior Ryan Dill said, "If it's something as simple as wearing a name tag, then it's worth it to keep the school safe. I think they don't like them because it's something else they have to do." He said it's a small thing for students to worry about and they need to pick their battles.

"They don't want to do something they're forced to do," said Masur.

Galloway said the punishment for not wearing the lanyards is "too strict." She said a detention would be enough but a Friday school is too severe.

Denlinger disagreed, saying the punishment is fair because students got three chances.

Masur said school security and safety is "a pretty big issue" and should be a top priority. Dill said safety is just part of going to school.

"If teachers use them as they are supposed to," said Foreman, "I think it will help."

Denlinger said since most of the doors are locked, there are video cameras and visitors are required to get passes to enter the building, she doesn't know how much more the lanyards will help with security.

"It's pretty well monitored," she said.

Part of the problem with the ID tags, Foreman said, is that "students feel like they don't have a voice in it."

Now that the school does have them, Denlinger said, students don't know who to see to voice their dislike about the lanyards. If they did talk to someone about them, whether teachers or administrators, she said, she doesn't know if anything would be done about students' concerns.

In previous years when students had just their ID cards, Galloway said, no teachers or administrators ever asked for them. Foreman said carrying ID cards would have been fine, but no one ever asked for them. Now they have to wear them around their necks.

"No one had a problem with it before," said Denlinger.

"I don't think we've ever had an outside threat," said Foreman. "It's always been internal."

And if an internal problem arises, said Denlinger, the lanyards won't help at all.

Not one of the five students is worried about the security at WCHS.

"I've never felt threatened," said Foreman.

Galloway said, "We've had a lot of false alarms."

Masur said he feels safe at the school with Warsaw Police Officer David Morales in the school and all the video cameras.

Warsaw, Foreman said, is an all-American town where the community makes her feel safe.

"There's enough precaution," said Denlinger.

All the students agreed that it is parents' concerns about school safety that caused the lanyards to come about.

"That's how it got started," said Masur. "The parents were concerned."

"My parents," said Galloway, "thought it was a stupid idea."

Denlinger said other parents also thought it violated the students' privacy.

"Hopefully, next year, we won't have to wear them," said Galloway. "I don't like them."

The school, Denlinger said, makes a bigger deal of the ID tags than her employment. "I wear my ID at my work but it's not a big deal. You don't have to wear it all the time." [[In-content Ad]]