For any of you older than...about...28-30 years old, you probably never had to do a Code Red drill while in school. Code Red was brought into schools as a safety measure shortly after the Columbine school shooting in 1999. During a Code Red drill, students are supposed to huddle in the safest area of the classroom (usually the corner furthest from the door or windows) while the teacher locks the door, pulls the shades, and turns off the lights. Then everyone is to stay as quiet and still as possible until the drill is over. The idea is that if a shooter doesn't see any movement in the classroom, he'll be more likely to assume the classroom is empty and move on.
For many classrooms, the Code Red practice that the Newtown teachers had prior to Friday paid off. One teacher huddled her students into the class bathroom and told them that the gunshots was actually hammering. Another gave her students coloring books to keep calm and occupied so they wouldn't make any noise. And of course there is the story of Victoria Soto, who hid her students in closets and cupboards before being gunned down herself. All of these teachers kept calm and led their students in what will probably be the most terrifying experience of their lives.
This year's freshmen were kindergarteners when I was a senior in high school. Likewise, this year's graduating class was in 3rd grade when I was in my last year of high school. The students of today don't remember a time when they didn't have Code Red drills, yet I have no memory of Code Red at PHS. I remember fire and tornado drills, but no Code Reds. In such a short time, we have gone from not even fathoming something like Columbine or Newtown to having a generation of kids who have constant reminders (5 drills per year) that gunmen in schools are a very real thing.
Forget the killer, remember the victims.
Charlotte Bacon 2/22/06
Daniel Barden 9/25/05
Rachel Davino 7/17/83
Olivia Engel 7/18/06
Josephine Gay 12/11/05
Ana Marquez-Greene 4/4/06
Dylan Hockley 3/8/06
Dawn Hocksprung 6/28/65
Madeleine Hsu 7/10/06
Catherine Hubbard 6/8/06
Chase Kowalski 10/31/05
Jesse Lewis 6/30/06
James Mattioli 3/22/06
Grace McDonnell 11/04/05
Anne Marie Murphy 7/25/60
Emilie Parker 5/12/06
Jack Pinto 5/6/06
Noah Pozner 11/20/06
Caroline Previdi 9/7/06
Jessica Rekos 5/10/06
Avielle Richman 10/17/06
Lauren Rousseau 6/82
Mary Sherlach 2/11/56
Victoria Soto 11/04/85
Benjamin Wheeler 9/12/06
Allison Wyatt 7/3/06
Nancy Lanza
| Day | Date | Start | End | Total Hours |
| Sun | 12/9/2012 | 7:15 PM | 11:00 PM | 3.75 |
| M | 12/10/2012 | 7:45 AM | 4:30 PM | 8.75 |
| T | 12/11/2012 | 7:45 AM | 5:45 PM | 10 |
| W | 12/12/2012 | 7:45 AM | 5:45 PM | 10 |
| Th | 12/13/2012 | 7:30 AM | 7:30 PM | 12 |
| 8:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 1.5 | ||
| F | 12/14/2012 | 8:00 AM | 3:45 PM | 7.75 |
| Sat | 12/15/2012 | 0 | ||
| Total | 53.75 |
wow
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