HAMDEN — They walk through the doors of Hamden High School.

One — the first in line — puts a bag into a clear, plastic bucket and then stands, arms out to the side, as a staff member waves a metal-detecting wand across the individual’s body.

The staff member does one more check with the wand after the person turns around.

That procedure, depicted in a video sent to parents of youths who attend the high school, represents what students can expect when they return to school Wednesday after threats of violence prompted a three-day closure.

The wands will be used until the district installs walk-through metal detectors, which it recently purchased.

During the closure, which began Friday, “the building underwent a complete safety sweep, which included a search of the school’s 2,000+ lockers,” according to an email sent to parents and signed by Principal Nadine Gannon.

“Our work has prioritized the overall well-being of students and staff, so we can resume teaching and learning in a safe and positive environment, which embodies the true spirit of Hamden High School,” she wrote.

Hamden High School Principal Nadine Gannon

Given the new protocol, Gannon’s email encourages students “not to bring bags to school, but if they do, to only carry items necessary for their school day.”

“Please note, just because the wand may sense metal on you, this does not mean you did something wrong! These are very sensitive devices that often pick up the smallest piece of metal, like buttons and buckles,” the email says. “Any student whose initial safety check is inconclusive will be subject to further screening in a discreet area nearby in order to resolve the concern.”

District officials announced the plan for metal detectors Monday in a special Board of Education meeting, when Student Resource Officer Jeremy Brewer also said two entrances would be available for returning students.

Each will have two to three “lanes” for students to walk through, he told the board. At least one “express lane” will serve students carrying limited personal belongings, he said.

School security staff will conduct the wanding, Gannon said at the meeting.

“I don’t want metal detectors in my school, but I don’t see how we can stop being held hostage to outside threats when all anyone has to do is put a social media post up and it sends everyone into panic,” Assistant Superintendent of Schools Christopher Melillo told the board.

Responding to concerns about student mental health, he noted it was difficult to connect kids with services when they were not in school.

Board member Austin Cesare said he “reluctantly” agreed installing metal detectors was the correct way forward.

“It’s not something that I would’ve supported years ago, but I think that we live in a very different environment, and I think that the protection of our children should be the number one priority,” he told the New Haven Register. “If we didn’t do metal detectors and, God forbid, something terrible were to happen, we’d be second-guessing ourselves for a long time.”

Still, Cesare said he does not like that metal detectors will greet students.

“Our hands are tied when it comes to utilizing all the technology available to us, and these poor kids — between COVID, between this — it’s just it’s such an unfortunate situation for our children to be growing up in,” he said. “Schools are supposed to be a happy place where learning happens (and) where kids get to grow.”

Board member Melissa Kaplan-Charkow said she worried about whether the new policy could cause more harm than good.

“My concern about the metal detectors is are we inadvertently causing more harm while trying to prevent harm?” she said. “Are we really thinking through the metal detectors in a way that is mindful of all the students and its impact?”

Kaplan-Charkow raised concerns about how the metal detectors would affect the neurodiverse population, whether students with anxiety would struggle with daily fears about setting them off, and about discomfort if the interaction takes place across gender lines, among other issues.

“One of the other concerns that I have … is that we have students that are survivors,” she said. “We have students that are survivors (of) abuse and the use of the wands near their bodies is going to bring up, I imagine, trauma. How are we going to support those students through this process?”

Superintendent of Schools Jody Goeler said administrators are cognizant of such concerns. The school is collaborating with mental health staff to come up with a list of students who might struggle with the new protocol and give them extra support, he said.

Hamden Superintendent of Schools Jody Goeler

Both male and female guards will conduct the searches, according to Goeler, who said administrators and police will observe the process.

“The wanding itself is not invasive,” he said. “There will be a high level of sensitivity. ... We’re totally aware that this is new, and we’re totally aware that different students will react to this.”

While no one likes the idea of metal detectors, Goeler said, kids need to go back to school.

“The goal of all of this is to ensure that our staff and students feel comfortable going back to school. The message we were getting from many members of our community was, ‘I’m afraid to send my kids to school,’” he said. “On one level we want to practice, you know, care and concern and caution. On the other end we know we need our kids back in school.”

Board members also suggested there should have been more community and board input into the plan.

Kaplan-Charkow said some felt left out of the conversation.

“I was under the impression that Monday night was also going to be a sort of workshop where we could talk about a plan going forward, listen to each other and get an understanding of where the administration was at,” she said. “Not only did we not have a vote but there was also no opportunity to have students and teachers be part of the process as well.”

“In different times when ... it’s not an issue of immediate threats, there’d be more time for the board to deliberate and develop a plan,” Goeler said when asked about such concerns.

He felt implementing the metal detectors was necessary for school safety.

“The board charges me with the authority to keep our schools safe,” he said. “I felt it was in the best interests of students and staff to bring in metal detectors.”

Board member Mariam Khan understood the matter “was a crisis in haste that had to be, you know, quickly solved. The school had to mobilize very quickly and there’s a lot of partners engaged in that work.”

She also recognized that the board was new and had not yet convened.

Still, Khan worried “we haven’t made a robust comprehensive effort to talk to students and to teachers,” she said.

Going forward, students must be included in decision-making, she said, also calling for a focus on sustainable, long-term measures to promote safety, such as improving mental health services and ensuring food and housing security.

A special Board of Education meeting was held Dec. 6 following threats of violence to Hamden High School. From left to right: board members Mariam Khan and Melissa Kaplan-Charkow, and Superintendent Jody Goeler.

“How do we make sure this isn’t just a fluctuation of parent-student-teacher organizing that dies down after we have a crisis? This is the last barrier of defense. This is the last barrier of defense,” Khan said of the metal detectors. “If we’re solving things right as they come to our door, they are not going to be better, (we) are not going to be healed.”

Meghan Friedmann covers North Branford, Guilford and Madison. Before joining the Register team, she worked on an independent journalism project about migration in Berlin, Germany. When she's not reporting, you can find her hiking Shoreline trails and eating her way through New Haven. She welcomes feedback and story ideas from readers.