High-Schoolers In Lakeland Plan Wednesday Walk Out

Some students at Lakeland and Walter Panas high schools in the Lakeland school district will take part in the National March 14 Student Walk Out.

There are several organized marches planned for March 14 across the Hudson Valley. Each student body has different motivations to organize and their own way to proceed. Likewise, all school districts are not alike. Some districts, like New Rochelle, applauded students' desire to be a part of the political process, but decided that as the demonstration is not a sanctioned school event, students who miss a class will have the absence recorded as an unexcused absence, and students who arrive to school or class late will be marked late.

The National School Walkout In A Nutshell

On Wednesday, March 14, students, staff, and supporters will walk out of their schools at precisely 10 a.m. for approximately 17 minutes in honor of the 17 people who were shot and killed at the Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland Florida earlier this year. The walkouts also serve as a protest against gun violence.

Who Organized Them?

School walkouts are typically organized locally, with student activist groups, concerned students, concerned parents or active members of the community putting the call out.

The marches were called for on the national level by Women's March Youth EMPOWER, which sought across-the-country marches to "protest Congress' inaction to do more than tweet thoughts and prayers in response to the gun violence plaguing our schools and neighborhoods."

"Students and staff have the right to teach and learn in an environment free from the worry of being gunned down in their classrooms or on their way home from school," the event page said.

What's Happening In Lakeland

Students who wish to take part will gather at a location outside each of the buildings for 17 minutes. Student speakers are expected to honor those who died at Parkland High School as well as at other schools throughout the country.

Following the 17 minutes, students are expected to return to their buildings. Students not participating will continue with their regular schedules.

Additional security will be provided during the events. During the walkout each campus will be closed to visitors with the exception of parents with prior permission.

PHOTO: Walter Panas High School/ google maps