What would happen if an active shooter entered Nobles’ campus? Would the student body know what to do or where to hide? Although a slim possibility, the thought has likely crossed every student’s mind at some point during their time at Nobles. Ultimately, while students may not be privy to campus security plans, Buildings and Grounds keeps us safe behind the scenes.
It is well understood that Nobles’ social culture and layout present some unique challenges to the security team. Primarily, the school has a very open campus. Although there is a front entrance with a gate, there are miles of unguarded, low stone walls that would be easy for an intruder to enter. Additionally, the campus is open to the public during the daytime so that joggers, dog walkers, and curious passersby can visit the grounds. According to Head of Buildings and Grounds Mike McHugh, maintaining an open campus is an intentional decision. “We don’t feel like we need to lock everybody in and prevent anybody from entering or leaving. In the future, that may have to change. But for now, we’re a very open campus by choice,” he said.
Part of this comes from a desire to maintain Nobles’ welcoming, community-first atmosphere. “We want to make this place feel like a home for you guys, instead of an institution. And I think it’s one of the things that admissions sell us as a school on. So we try to be that welcoming, safe place that students can always come to,” McHugh said. Nobles’ community-first environment has rarely come at the expense of its campus security. However, sometimes the two values are at odds.
(Photo Credit: Harrison Abber)One instance of this conflict occurred during the construction of the new Putnam Library. “There was a lot of back and forth when we built the library with all the glass. People were asking, ‘Are we secure enough?’ ‘Are we safe enough?’ And there were certainly people on both sides of the coin on that one,” McHugh said. The construction project forced the school to choose between security and an improved learning environment, and they eventually leaned toward the latter. “We had to ask ourselves, ‘Do we actually design a building that is less effective and less welcoming, just for a very, very small percentage that something could go wrong?’ And we decided we had enough security systems in place to answer ‘no,’” McHugh said.
However, these decisions of the past, coupled with a lack of knowledge of the behind-the-scenes security systems that McHugh referenced, have led to uncertainty about security among the current student body. “If an active shooter came onto campus, I feel like we would have no idea what to do,” Arthi Vithiananthan (Class I) said. “It would be good to do an active shooter drill, at least to know what you’re supposed to do or what’s in place for you,” Vithiananthan said.
“Do we actually design a building that is less effective and less welcoming, just for a very, very small percentage that something could go wrong?”
McHugh has considered performing an active shooter drill as a possibility, but for now, the idea has been tabled. “All the adults agree that it probably is going to add to undue stress and scare people more than the value of it is,” McHugh said. He adds that safety should never be a concern for students at Nobles. It is an intentional decision that these conversations do not involve students. “We still think of security concerns and talk through them and try to make sure that we are prepared. But things are done behind the scenes and intentionally done this way to not panic everyone,” McHugh said. One example of this is the teachers’ orientation briefing about campus threats. “The week before everybody else starts, new faculty learns how we teach at Nobles and the things that we do here. And part of that new faculty training is bringing them into a classroom and saying, ‘This is what you would do in case of an active shooter,’” McHugh said. This should come as a relief to the subset of students who are concerned about an armed intruder on Nobles’ campus.
Although some students express concerns, the resounding agreement is that Nobles is a safe space to work and learn. “I’ve never worried about campus security and I’ve always felt safe here,” Henry Kocher (Class III) said. This sense of security is, by far, the most widespread feeling among the student body. “If a shooter came onto campus, I think Nobles would know how to protect us, and they would. I think it’s something that teachers are probably prepared for,” Lucas Ilzarbe (Class II) said. Nobles’ security is seemingly invisible, yet effective.