A stop sign for students

After debating the student parking policy for the past few weeks, the Central High School District Board of Education decided at its Nov. 10 meeting to change the policy and prohibit students from leaving campus in their cars.

The campus will be closed starting at the beginning of first period until the end of seventh. The only portion of the policy left to be determined is whether the district will request that side streets around the high schools will be closed off to parking between 7 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. The board voted 7-2 in favor of the change, and said that it won’t go into effect until the 2010-11 school year.

Central senior Korde Inniss said that if students are prohibited to leave campus with their cars before eighth period, they will find a way to circumvent the policy. “They are going to find a way around it,” Inniss said. “They’ll just park at a friend’s house.”

Last March, “Inside Edition” aired a segment that examined the risks of students driving during the school day, and North teens were among those profiled on the show. Some were shown speeding off campus, running stop signs and driving recklessly. Other accidents involving students at Central and South this year prompted the board to change the student driving policy.

Students from all three of the district’s high schools spoke out against the policy change during the meeting, explaining that other problems could arise from the change. Students questioned if the cafeteria could accommodate the extra students during lunch periods, where visitors would park since they currently use the student lot, and how the change in policy could affect students who have first period off.

Superintendent Dr. Marc Bernstein said he doesn’t anticipate any of those scenarios causing problems. “My guess is that the majority of seniors will choose to walk to lunch, rather than stay in the cafeteria,” Bernstein said. He noted that there about 200 seniors in each school and four or five lunch periods a day, so even if seniors decided to stay in school for lunch, the cafeteria could accommodate the extra 50 or so students per lunch period.

Bernstein added that visitor parking would be moved to the faculty lot, and the gates to the student parking lot would not be closed, so students who have first period off can still park in the lot if space is available. Since the gates will not be closed during the day, Bernstein said that those who remove their cars before eighth period will be penalized for breaking school code. “We will not police the lot,” he said. “But those who violate school code will have their permit rescinded for a year. Will some try to violate the code? Yes, but the consequences will be quite serious.”

Trustee Elise Antonelli, who along with Trustee Tony Iadevaio voted to keep the policy as is, said she struggled with her decision, but ultimately decided that driving during lunch periods is a good way to teach responsibility. “We are responsible for creating a safe learning environment, and teaching kids responsibility and accountability,” Antonelli said. “We need to give them the decision to do that and allow them to manifest these qualities.”

Central’s Student Council President, Christopher Roberts, said that students need to learn responsibility, and driving during lunch is a good way to do that. “We need to establish ourselves as adults,” he said. “We need a chance to prove ourselves.”

Bernstein said he’s sure students drive at night and on the weekends, so not allowing students to drive during a 45-minute lunch period will not inhibit them from gaining driving experience.

Board President Larry Trogel said he understands that students will park off campus so they can use their cars during lunch, but they need to understand that a car is a weapon, and they shouldn’t race back to school. “The worst thing I ever had to do was go to a wake for a student,” Trogel said, who was noticeably choked up by the memory. “I don’t want to ever do that again. I’d rather see you get back late, then not get back at all.”

The policy committee will draft a new version of the student driving policy, and Bernstein said he wants the new policy in place by next September.