Construction has been underway for months in the main hall by the science wing. The renovated “privacy” restrooms, part of a new Restroom Privacy and Safety Pilot Program, are set to open March 18.
Once these restrooms are up and running, the single-occupancy restrooms by the clinic will revert back to staff-only restrooms. In the coming years, the school plans to modernize more of its student restrooms, taking inspiration from designs at Saint Paul Public Schools.
Though various levels of the pilot program have been implemented across the county, Valley was chosen to receive renovated privacy restrooms as well as sensor technology.
The new sensor technology was implemented in every student — not staff — restroom as of approximately 90 days ago. These sensors are set to activate once the new privacy restrooms open.
What are the sensors?
The sensors are able to detect various levels of activity, though no sensors are intended to intrude upon student privacy. The sensors are capable of detecting abnormal noise levels, such as shouting or gunshots. They are also designed to detect all types of smoke and will send an alert if the sensor is touched.
In single-occupancy restrooms, these sensors will be set to detect how many people are occupying the bathroom and whether the occupant has exceeded the current time limit of 5 minutes.
The sensors in both bathrooms will respond to the key phrase: “Help! Emergency!” and issue an alert. When triggered, the sensor outside the bathroom will light up, and a trained staff member will respond to the alert.
Responses to these alerts will be handled in the same manner as any other school incident. Training for teachers and admin occurred this week.
Students found to be in violation of student conduct — due to these sensor alerts — will be reprimanded or disciplined according to the type and severity of the infraction.
Program Purpose
The Restroom Privacy and Safety Pilot is intended to address state-wide concerns about restroom safety and drug/vape use.
In 2021, the passing of former Governor Ralph Northam’s Model Transgender Policy — allowing transgender students to use the restrooms aligning with their gender identity — caused controversy surrounding the safety of student bathrooms. An incident of sexual assault at LCPS further exacerbated these concerns.
The previous Model Transgender Policy has since been revoked by the passage of Governor Glenn Youngkin’s 2023 Model Transgender Policy — requiring transgender students to use the restrooms matching their birth sex. Still, the policy requires all Virginia schools to provide student access to single-occupancy, gender-neutral restrooms.
Additionally, suspected Fentanyl overdoses in LCPS have sparked concerns about drug use in restrooms. Smoke-detecting sensors are part of an effort to address this issue and reduce teen vaping.
This pilot program has been implemented in other high schools across the county. Broad Run, Dominion, Heritage and Woodgrove High Schools have all received these single-occupancy restroom renovations. Dominion, Heritage, Park View and Stone Bridge High Schools and Farmwell Station and Sterling Middle Schools have installed sensors in their existing student restrooms.
