A school district in the US state of Indiana is making it mandatory starting next school year for all students, regardless of grade, to wear transparent backpacks to increase safety.
“Clear backpacks won’t solve every school’s security problem, but they are a clear deterrent to harmful and prohibited items,” Eric Crittendon, the district’s chief security officer, said in a statement.
Students are allowed a non-transparent 14 by 22 centimeter case in their backpack for personal items, and the district will provide each student with a clear backpack each.
Similar measures have been put in place at schools elsewhere in the US in recent years to prevent school shootings and other acts of violence.
In Indiana’s neighboring state of Michigan, two school districts have taken the drastic step of completely banning backpacks on school grounds after a third-grader found a loaded gun in his backpack.