In an effort to help students get the most out of their education and mitigate wandering the halls during class, Lakeland Regional High School has been rolling out an update on the school’s hall pass policy that started in the winter of 2024.

Each hall pass is now color coded depending on the building the pass is from. The East building has kept the purple passes that they have had since the beginning of the year, while the West building has changed to orange passes. The goal is that this will prevent students from crossing over the bridge to wander the hallways on the other side of the school as staff members on hall duty can easily identify where a student should be. Additionally, the administration has stated and ensured that bathrooms in each building will be open during each block, so the need to cross the bridge to find an open restroom is also eliminated.

The pass system is also in place for student safety. Teachers need to know which students are out of their room if there were ever an emergency, and by setting up a system where students are required to stay in their building, the policy helps account for student’s whereabouts if need be.

However, students and teachers have their own opinion on this new policy. English teacher, Ms. Laura Fucilli, told the Ledger that the new system helps keep students honest, but worries that it could create a sense of mistrust between students and their teacher. Ms. Kimberly Allegrini, who runs the Refocus Room, stated, “I think they are great, and we should have different passes for each wing.” A group of freshman students disagree with the new policy and feel that the new passes are unreasonable, but did not elaborate on why.

LRHS is also working towards making the school a more secure and safe place for students and staff. At the March Board of Education meeting, which will take place on Tuesday, March 19 in the Lecture Hall at 7:00 p.m., the board will move to appoint an additional School Security Officer for the current school year.