According to Assistant Principal John Newton, parents are dropping off students in the middle of Main Street instead of at designated drop off places (Natatorium, Freshman Center and front entrance). “During the morning when it’s rush time, parents have been letting their kids get out of their car in the middle of the street, and that’s a safety issue because somebody could hit them,” Newton said.

Newton said at the moment, the administration is just giving out a warning. Based on what occurs next, it will decide if consequences will be executed. If problems continue, the most extensive potential consequences include tickets for drivers and suspensions for students.

He said refusal to abide by the rules could pose a problem for both student and driver. “If you’re driving behind someone that’s letting their kid out of the car (on Main Street) and the kid falls down and another vehicle is moving, the kid could have to dodge the car and they (drivers) could hit somebody else and cause an accident,” Newton said.

Officer Adam Miller shares Newton’s views. He said this has posed a safetly threat lately because a lot of people have to come in short amount of time which leads parents to start dropping off their kids in places other than what’s expected. “It does create a very dangerous situation because there’s a lot of cars in the area and in the mornings, it’s going to get darker and darker so it’s hard to see those kids,” Officer Adam Miller said. “Parents need to remember that there are thousands of kids being dropped off. It’s going to be crowded, and they just need to be patient and expect to wait in line.”

Newton said his advice to parents who wish to avoid the traffic at rush hour is to get the school earlier. “If you could bring your kids to school earlier, there’s a less likelihood of having traffic issues. Also, kids could get off at a side street where there’s not as much congestion and then walk the rest of the way to school.”

Miller urges drivers to follow the directions of the officers directing traffic and to avoid dropping off students on Main Street. Instead, the safest place to drop off students is on school property. “Parents need to remember that while they only worry about their child, the school officials need to worry about the thousands of kids showing up to school every day,” Miller said. “Patience is the key.”