With anti-Semitism spiraling in the United States, Northwest Yeshiva High School is rethinking its security measures on a day-to-day basis.

Rabbi Yehuda Gabay, head of school at NYHS, took down the NYHS sign outside the school and hired an officer from the Mercer Island Police Department to sit outside NYHS every day.  “A lot of security is prevention,” Gabay said. “It’s an ugly way to look at it but… you want them to think ‘It’s so hard that I’m just going to go somewhere else.’”

The school already has locked gates but has never had a security guard before. Currently, Gabay is fundraising for new security measures. He says he would like to have a security guard all year round. Gabay also is revamping the security cameras. “We noticed a few spots that were missing and we need better video [quality],” Gabay said.

There are a couple of ways NYHS can improve its security further, according to junior Izzy Hoffman. Hoffman agrees that there should be a security guard outside at all times during the school day. But he also believes in improving security regarding the gates around the school. “A lot of other schools will have student IDs for students, like you need a code to get into the door,” Hoffman said.

Officer Luke Ulavale, the Mercer Island Police Department police officer guarding NYHS, strongly believes in the Jewish community being ready and having situational awareness at all times. “You can’t be overly cautious,” Ulavale said.

Anti-Semitism is reaching historical levels in the United States following the attack on October 7th in Israel by the terrorist group Hamas. As of October 24, preliminary data from the ADL Center on Extremism indicated that reported incidents of harassment, vandalism and assault increased by 388 percent over the same period last year, reaching the highest number in almost three decades and the second-highest number on record.

On Friday, October 13th, six days after the attack, Hamas called upon the Palestinian people, Arab and Muslim nations and people of the world to participate in the “Al-Aqsa Flood Friday.”

“That Friday was a very surreal and scary time, and honestly, driving to school that morning was very scary for me. I didn’t know what to expect and how my day would look,” senior Rose Clayman said. 

Although Mercer Island is a safe community, according to Gabay, many students were worried for their safety when attending school that day. 

Deirdre Schreiber, principal at NYHS, held an assembly on October 12th announcing there would be school the following day. “That’s why they call terrorists terrorists,” said Gabay. “They want to terrify people and make us close schools and create more stress and anxiety. ” 

With the new security measures, NYHS students and staff feel more protected at school. “Having a police officer outside the school has made me feel more safe and secure with all the violence going on,” Clayman said.