Private Schools Balance Open Culture With Need for Security

Sophia Hollander:

For more than a decade, a lifelike statue of a security guard nicknamed Alphonse has whimsically stood watch over York Prep, a private school on New York’s Upper West Side.
But in today’s grimmer age, he and his equally fake dog have become the fourth line of defense for students–provided a would-be shooter peers in and thinks they are real.
In the aftermath of last December’s Sandy Hook school massacre in Newtown, Conn., private schools across New York City are re-evaluating and revamping their security systems.