Officials at Duncanville Independent School District have rolled out a new safety rule that bans students from carrying non-transparent backpacks.
From January 8, students from pre-K to 12th grade will have to carry a clear backpack. The change was announced last summer and on December 1, each student received a compliant backpack for free.
A video spot outlining the new policy stated that the new safety protocol would help keep staff and students safe by keeping dangerous items out of schools.
Students will be permitted to carry a small non-transparent clutch for cell phones, money, or hygienic items, as well as a lunchbox limited to 6 inches by 9 inches in size.
Several North Texas school systems have adopted clear bag policies lately, such as Mesquite ISD and Dallas ISD. Although the rule has been flagged by critics for making students feel untrusted or breeding false confidence in school safety, supporters have pointed to its efficiency in keeping concealed weapons out of schools.
However, even those in favor of clear bag policies stress that it is just one aspect of what should be a wide-ranging school safety regime.
“It’ll take us in the right direction to make schools a little bit safer,” Josh Underhill, parent of a student at Dallas ISD, said about the clear bag rule, according to CBS News Texas.
School safety has been a major subject of political discussion not only in Texas — where lawmakers recently mandated the presence of an armed peace officer on all state-funded campuses — but nationwide.
The new year kicked off with reports of a shooting at Perry High School in Iowa, with the alleged shooter reportedly dying of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, as covered in The Dallas Express. Four students and one administrator were injured and one student was killed in the January 4 attack, which is still under investigation.
The students had reportedly run active shooter drills and some ran and took cover at the National Guard Armory as they had been instructed.