Weapon scanners are now permanent at Annandale HS

By Shane Gomez

Passing through a weapon detection scanner is now a permanent procedure for students arriving at Annandale High School.

The scanners were set up at Annandale to help staff prepare for the start of the 2025-26 school year, when weapon detection scanners will be implemented in all high schools, according to a May 29 email to staff from Annandale Principal Shawn DeRose.

Fairfax County Public Schools launched a pilot program for weapon detectors this spring, which included a one-day test run at Annandale’s main entrance on May 15. Since May 30, the scanners have been added at doors 7 and 10.

Related story: FCPS launches weapon detection pilot

The scanners, free-standing towers, are operated by staff members and set aside when the school day begins.

Before students enter, they must remove from their backpacks any items that could set off a false alarm, such as laptops, three-ring binders, collapsible umbrellas, metal lunch boxes, metal pencil cases, and metal glasses cases. If an alarm sounds, the student must pass a secondary screening.

“We appreciate everyone’s cooperation and support in our shared commitment to maintaining a safe learning environment for us all,” DeRose wrote in a May 29 email to families announcing the permanent weapons detection program.

In April, FCPS announced it would randomly select high schools for a weapon detection system pilot. The move came after two students at Edison High School were charged with bringing a gun on school property on Feb. 20 and two teenagers were charged a week later with brandishing a gun at Mount Vernon Woods Elementary School.

Weapon detection scanners at some of the other pilot schools, including Edison High School and West Potomac High School, where a student was stabbed on April 23, have also become permanent.

Students at Annandale High School have complained about long lines at entrances every morning, resulting in some students being marked as tardy.

“It’s a bit of a struggle because it does make me late sometimes due to having to take items out of my bag, which is very annoying,” said 11th-grader Alex Gardner. She leaves home earlier now so she can make it to class on time.

“We expect the process to get easier every day,” DeRose wrote in his email to families.

The OpenGate scanners, from the company CEIA, are more sensitive than traditional metal detectors, which makes them better at identifying weapons rather than metal in general, according to a FAQ page from FCPS. They use low-frequency electromagnetic fields instead of traditional X-ray systems that rely on ionizing radiation.

According to FCPS, “the screening process is completely safe for all individuals, including children, pregnant women, and those with pacemakers or other medical devices.”

Shane Gomez is Annandale Today’s intern. A graduate of Annandale High School, Shane is a student at The New School in New York City.