Lincoln administrators recently began enforcing a new policy prohibiting headphone use in the hallways, confusing students who are unsure of why this policy was created. 

“The policy was born out of concerns for student safety in our halls,” stated principal Peyton Chapman, who created the new policy with the administrative team over the summer. “Safety has to be every high school principal’s top priority. I would hate it if any students were ever hurt because we didn’t try to create the safest school environment possible.” Some students feel the same way.

“At first I was confused and didn’t like the policy because I think that students should have time to listen to music…” said sophomore Ana Narayan. “I don’t know the reason, but if it’s because of safety, I think it’s a good idea.” 

This policy is not entirely new to Lincoln. Headphones were actually prohibited from Lincoln’s hallways in 2016 according to a February 17, 2016, article published in The Cardinal Times, “Strict Use on Headphones Implemented.” 

 According to the article, having headphones on would make it difficult for a student to be able to hear a shouted warning and respond accordingly. According to the article, security officer Stan Caples conducted an experiment where he yelled “Get down!” in one of Lincoln’s hallways, and a student only 30 feet away did not hear him because he had earbuds in. 

Many confused students say that this policy is unnecessary because they can wear one earbud. Chapman explains that they “tested ‘one earbud in’ by asking students in the halls to remove one ear bud, and they still didn’t hear us and kept walking.” 

Even though the no headphone policy has stirred up some confusion, the overall goal of Portland Public Schools and administrators is to keep students safe from possible outside threats.