Last month, two major safety incidents concerning FSS students were reported within three days of each other: on January 11th, 2025, and January 14th, 2025. No students were seriously physically harmed, but the perceived uptick in suspicious activity near the FSS campus has been cause for concern for some in the community. Upper School Director Chris Singler will be having Friends Select faculty and the Philadelphia Police Department “[take additional measures] to heighten the security on our campus and the safety of our community.”
The Falcon surveyed 92 FSS Upper School students about their sense of safety around campus and what measures they would like the school to take in response to these incidents. Of these respondents, 32.6% were freshmen, 21.7% were sophomores, 19.6% were juniors, and 26.1% were seniors; 54 respondents identified as women, 33 as male, 11 combined for non-binary, transgender, or preferring not to disclose; and respondents’ race was majority White at 64.1%. (18.5% of respondents identify as Black, and 8.7% each of respondents identify as Asian and multiracial).
The majority of respondents said they felt safe crossing between the two campus buildings during the school day (64.1% reported feeling mostly safe, and 22.8% reported feeling completely safe). Students generally also feel comfortable arriving at school in the morning: 48.9% of students reported feeling completely safe, 42.4% reported feeling mostly safe, and two respondents felt completely unsafe. The majority of students’ concerns lie after the end of the school day, which is when both of the recent safety incidents occurred. Only 60.9% of respondents reported consistently feeling safe leaving in the afternoon. 28.3% reported feeling safe only sometimes, and nearly 11% of respondents reported feeling mostly or completely unsafe leaving campus.
41.3% of respondents reported feeling that their sense of safety had changed following the incidents, though reactions varied among students. “Not really because living in the city, I am just already aware that this stuff happens, so it’s not as much of a shock to me that it actually did happen,” one anonymous senior shared. For some, these incidents reinforced the importance of staying alert even while being near FSS, but for others like this respondent, these can be seen as an unfortunate, albeit expected, aspect of living in downtown Philadelphia.
When asked about potential safety measures for FSS, opinions were divided but seemed to encourage change. While 31.5% of respondents supported the hiring of a part/full-time security to monitor students between the STEAM and Parkway building, 47.8% said “maybe,” showing uncertainty and a need for further discussion. Similarly, 44.6% of respondents expressed openness to increased police presence, while 31.5% opposed it. Other suggested measures included adding security cameras outside the buildings, which 40.2% of respondents said they would be open to having. Another anonymous senior emphasized a proactive approach from the school, saying, “I think we just need to teach kids how to be better aware of their surroundings while walking around downtown Philadelphia. This is nothing new.”
