In a year of turbulent worldwide events, safety and its importance have come to the forefront of many minds. For students here at HEHS, new safety protocols enforced throughout the school have only further solidified the importance of safety as a community.

“I feel like the safety policies are pretty good for the most part,” said Kimberly Padron, senior.

Padron went on to say that a strength of our current safety policies is our identification system, such as our IDs and attendance. 

Any change can bring with it an adjustment period.  “I think checking IDs is a little inconvenient,” said Hafsa Fatima, junior. “Not a lot of people have it out.” 

Safety Week and a recent Parent-Principal meeting, which focused on school safety and cell phone rules, have helped to inform students, staff, and the community, so that everyone’s questions are answered. 

When safety is shown to be crucial to everyone’s wellbeing is discussed honestly, everyone will feel more comfortable in their surroundings.  

“I want to keep myself safe, and [I want to] keep others safe, too,” said Tiffany Burghelea, freshman. 

While everyone adjusts to changes this school year, Hoffman Estates High School’s safety / security continues to move forward with the news safety procedures. Students and staff also continue to have important discussions in an effort to be proactive and informed.

“Safety is really the responsibility of all of us; we share this community, we share these spaces together, so we all have to be responsible for keeping them safe,” said Justin Onayemi, administrator. “If you see something that doesn’t seem right or is suspicious, you [have to] report it so that we can make sure everyone is safe.”