It’s no secret that Rocky cell reception is awful. Apps don’t load, messages don’t send, and it’s overall a headache for students. But students are not alone in their frustration – some Rocky teachers feel that not being able to make calls in the building is a safety concern.

“I cannot access my phone in all classrooms,” Mrs. White said, “and I’d like to be able to access my phone in case of an emergency. I can’t always get to the freestanding phones, and I can’t always get to the computer safely. I just have my phone that I carry around with me all the time. I’d like WiFi so I can call if there’s an emergency.”

Students who use Verizon report the worst Internet connection, with most other networks having spotty connection varying on classroom and Sprint being the best. Every major network reports excellent coverage around Rocky and Fort Collins but the continuing problems show that is not the case.

“I feel like if they had WiFi for students it wouldn’t be a bad thing,” senior Torie Wolf said. “Like, I have to go home to download my pictures for the school newspaper because my phone doesn’t work.”

The first solution many suggest is a school-wide WiFi network. IT Specialist Mr. Sanchez says that while it’s viable, the WiFi would be slow considering the capabilities of the district and would possibly be limited only to teachers. This hypothetical WiFi network, while slow, would still put a large dent in the school’s budget, because there are 126 staff members as of 2018.

Sanchez says that it is also possible for the district to increase cell connection inside the building rather than a WiFi network. However, this is also a costly and difficult solution. Each cell network (Verizon, Sprint, AT&T, etc.) operates on a separate frequency meaning the district would need to strengthen the connection for each network individually.

According to Mr. Ruffner, the district is looking into possible solutions for the reception problem, but doesn’t view it as a security risk. Rather, feeling that the district runs into more security issues with problems like public WiFi and access to the building’s entrances.

“I understand the concern,” Ruffner said. “But it’s not our primary method of communication in the building. I find it more of a nuisance than a true security issue.”

“We don’t even have good WiFi on our computers,” senior Mia Stolpe said. “We’re in a school system that has us rely on the Internet and stuff like that; it sucks that we don’t always have it.”