SEMINOLE COUNTY -- As elementary, middle and high schools students across Central Florida finish out their last few days of the school year, many of them are heading to school without something they’ve likely had all year long -- a backpack.
- Administrators tell students not to bring backpacks
- Policy in place for safety, to prevent pranks
- No backpack rule goes into effect in Seminole May 23
Seminole County school administrators banned backpacks from all schools in the district for the last three days of the school year, partially because of the most recent school shooting in Texas.
A school district spokesperson says some county schools have had the no-backpack rule for the end of the school year for years. The idea is to prevent students from bringing in items that could be used for end-of-the-school-year pranks.
But after last Friday’s deadly school shooting in Texas, Seminole County school administrators decided to make the policy district-wide just to be safe.
Orange County School administrators say their school district has had the no-backpack rule in place for the last week of school for several years. They say the rule has significantly decreased the amount of paper and other instructional materials left behind at the end of the school year.
Seminole County school administrators say part of the rule is also for practical reasons – students’ classes are mostly wrapped up for the year, and they don’t have much homework to take home anyway.
Students are allowed to carry around plastic quart-size bags to carry a few personal items with them, as well as small bags, purses and other individual items they may need.
“It just makes it safer if there are no backpacks, because they can bring stuff in the backpacks to school,” said Michelle Ray, a parent whose daughter goes to Forest City Elementary School in Seminole County.
After recent school shootings, Ray hopes school administrators will continue to look for ways to keep students like her daughter safe.
“They need to make more changes I think, faster, so it doesn’t happen again,” Ray said.
School administrators in Seminole County say if a student did show up to school with a backpack, or a bag with sports or other equipment for after-school activities, the student would simply be asked to leave it at a front office until the end of the school day.
In Seminole County, the no-backpack rule went into effect on Wednesday and lasts through the last day of school, which is Friday, May 25.