Pali held an active intruder drill on Thursday, Sept. 26 during a Community Day period. The drill consisted of a short review of procedures to use during an active shooter situation, followed by a simulated lock down.

After a review of what to do in a shooter situation, students were told to barricade doors, turn off the lights and hide in the safest, most concealed part of the classroom, as announcements about the location of the simulated shooter were given. Staff moved around the school trying to open doors, testing how secure they were.

In regard to the effectiveness of the drill, Director of Operations Don Parcell said, “If everyone takes them seriously, reviews the material and practices as needed, even though such an event would be scary and chaotic … we [Pali Administration] believe this training would be very beneficial to everyone to be better prepared.”

Parcell also explained that the school will have these drills once a semester “to help everyone … be better prepared for such an event.”

Sophomore Ananya Tan said, “The drill we just had was the same one as last time… It was kind of boring, but it was also helpful because people will know better because they heard it twice.”

Junior Ryan Ayers explained, “It was helpful to see what type of formations of the desks we should do… if it would actually be effective.” He added, “The whole drill was well organized and executed but the classroom was not very serious about the drill at all.”

Some staff members quietly complained about the drill taking away class time. Nonetheless, most students and staff agreed that these drills are important.

Sophomore Ella Novie summed up the prevailing attitude, saying, “I think it may help, and it’s better than nothing, but it can be improved on greatly.”