The Golden Trident

By Kamryn Casebeer 

Do you like having an open campus here at Golden High School? I would assume that you do, because why wouldn’t you? Having an open campus means leaving for lunch and off blocks! But have you ever thought about the bad parts of our open campus policy? One of the most evident reasons is attendance. 

Obviously, this is all coming from a student perspective. Our Community Liaison here at GHS, Mitch, said it allows us to only have one lunch, whereas if you have a closed campus, we have to feed 1400 kids and have three or four lunch periods. It also gives kids the opportunity to get off of campus for a little bit.” He also said that if there was an option, he would not want to change GHS to a closed campus, even though he said, “Yes, having an open campus affects attendance because lunch is short, lots of kids are tardy because they go long ways to eat lunch, which makes them late.” 

One thing that is very commonly noticed is how many students are tardy throughout the week, one of the reasons for the tardy policy that was applied this year. When students have the ability to come and go as they please, it causes more tardies, absences, and early releases, especially if they have a car. Having an open campus comes with responsibilities, but also consequences if it is taken advantage of. Just because you have the ability to leave, doesn’t mean that you should if it is not your off block. 

Another obvious reason is safety. Here at GHS, we have a great security team that is here to protect us, but there are three jails/detention centers within a 10-mile radius of our school, so there is that uncomfortable feeling that staff and students may feel. Although, there is a safety policy where any visitors have to check in with the office, show an ID, and have a visitor sticker in view, what happens if someone goes in through the cafeteria building? In other schools, students and staff have to have their student IDs with them whenever they come in or out of the building. Would this be an efficient policy to have here even with our open campus policy?

If you know someone that goes to other schools in Jeffco, you probably know that campus policies are not the same as ours. For example, D’evelyn High School has a closed campus, and students are only allowed to leave, besides dismissal, with a parent signing them out in the office. Obviously, that is not the same policy that we have, because parents here just have to call the attendance line and sign them out over the phone. 

While there are downsides to having an open campus, there are also upsides. Every teenager has that exciting feeling of just getting your license and being able to drive their car alone for the first time, so being able to take yourself to school and go somewhere for your off block is a very happy feeling. As well as being able to go to lunch with your friends, which some students at different schools don’t have the ability to do. This may give students a sense of freedom that could be useful in the future.