Earlier this school year, each student was given a red lanyard and an ID card holder. In an interview, Fallon’s principal, Mrs. Baligaya, clarifies that there was no specific event that led to the implementation of lanyards. “I mean, we’re continually thinking about how to improve safety and systems. What could we do, and what does it look like on a campus with almost 1,700 kids?” She says that while brainstorming, the administration noticed that other schools like Cottonwood Creek use lanyards. “The main concern was safety. We just want to make sure we can identify people on campus.”
Another new change that was introduced to Fallon at the start of this year was Care Coins. The Fallon Care Coins system is a way for students to be rewarded for engaging in considerate, responsible, and safe practices. Lanyards have since been seamlessly integrated with the Care Coins system, allowing students to simply scan the barcode on their identification card to earn coins.
Over this year, the requirements for lanyards have changed too. Since December 2nd, 2024, students have been allowed to wear a lanyard of their choice, allowing them the freedom to wear what is most comfortable and affordable to them. A few classes also wear specialized lanyards, notifying students and staff around them that they’re part of that elective. Mrs. Baligaya expands on the reasoning for this, explaining, “We also wanted people to identify important student groups on campus. Like PEAC, for example; they don’t wear their sweater every day, but we want to know who they are, so we’ll give them a green lanyard. Or why does this kid have his phone out? Oh, it’s because he’s in video production. Things like that.”
In a survey about the new lanyards that garnered over 120 responses, students reported the benefits of lanyards along with numerous incidents of misconduct and theft. Eighth-grader Andi Balmes shares a personal experience with the misuse of lanyards around campus. “Students are abusing their power with [lanyards] by hitting others. One time, I was hit in the head with it during attendance.”
Seventh-grader Ananya Sonpar recalls witnessing a similar experience the first day lanyards were implemented around the school. “When we got the lanyards, I saw this kid hitting another kid,” Ananya details. “He hit his hand, and got a huge cut that he had to get stitched.”
The survey also received reports of theft, describing how lanyards are sometimes stolen and turned to the ASB office for a reward. Eighth-grader Rithik Reddy Kesani illustrates, “It’s very common for some people—say, my friends—to steal each other’s lanyards. With my friends, they usually give them back pretty much immediately. But it makes it very obvious how easy it is to just take it and run.”
Though the survey received its fair share of complaints, many students wrote that it had made their experience at school a lot easier. Sixth grader Aanya Jha is new to the district, and she says that lanyards are especially helpful for new students, describing her occasional difficulty with remembering her ID number. “On the first day, I forgot my ID number, and it was frustrating for me to fish in my backpack while everybody was waiting in line. After the first week though, I got used to it, because then I could just look at my lanyard.”
Fallon students also said they appreciate that lanyards make things more efficient on campus. For instance, machines that scan lanyards to update student attendance have been situated in a handful of classrooms across campus. As the flaws and kinks of the system are worked out in the coming weeks, the machines are expected to exit the experimental piloting phase and be implemented everywhere, speeding up attendance and leaving more time for learning. The ability to simply scan your lanyard somewhere also speeds up the lunch lines and the process of checking out books at the library.
Whether intentional or simply a case of forgetfulness, a lot of students don’t bring their lanyards to school. With students actively going against the school’s policy to keep students safe, the school administration was driven to administer new guidelines to encourage students to wear their lanyards. These new rules stated that students would receive three warnings to wear their lanyards, and if they continued to oppose the lanyards policy then they would receive a detention for each instance thereafter. While these regulations have only been enacted as a method of discipline, some students still feel that issuing detentions is extreme. Sixth grader Aanya Jha, who previously noted the benefits of lanyards, vocalizes her thoughts and concerns about the intensity of the punishment system. “Lots of people are getting detention because they left their lanyards at home, and that’s not really nice for just an experimental project.”
Seventh grader Vaibhav Saravanan believes we should keep the lanyards system, but advocates for the removal of disciplining entirely. He says that students who get detentions for not wearing their lanyards “can’t enjoy their lunchtime and they have to just eat in silence. We shouldn’t put any consequences for not wearing lanyards. Those are unnecessary.”
As is the case with anything new, it will take time for the lanyard system to be perfected and used to its full potential. In its current developing stages, communicating student concerns and giving the administration’s explanations a platform to be heard is crucial. As this school year comes to a close, new changes will undoubtedly be made that benefit students across campus, including the aforementioned attendance machines. Though there’s no way to know exactly what will happen in the next few years, lanyards ensure that the future holds a safer and more connected Fallon.
