Yes: 16
No: 84

Venice High School is one of the only Los Angeles Unified School District high school to be an open campus. The Oarsman polled a total of 100 students and teachers on whether Venice High should put up a fence to keep people from coming onto the school campus with negative intentions.

Overall the people at Venice High mostly answered no with a total of 84 and a total of 16 voted yes.

One junior summarized the thoughts of students who don’t want to put up a fence around the school.

“We shouldn’t have a fence because if we did, it would feel like we were trapped in rather than the freedom we have. If something bad happened it would be harder to get out.” said Nina Rodriguez, a junior at VHS.

One student said it would be okay to have a fence, but we should have security posted at the gate 24/7.

“I believe Venice is a safe community,¨ said Artemio Picasso, a senior at VHS. ¨I also believe that building a fence won’t keep danger way. What we need is more security. If building a fence is the end result, we should only have one entrance and have someone there at all times.”

¨In general I do not support an all encompassing fence around the high school as this may trap people in a sad situation,¨ said Mr. Midsanon Lloyd, a teacher at VHS. ¨The best overall solution is someone to continuously monitor the front. Fences and metal detectors offer a false sense of security.”