As students flood through Latin’s front doors, hustling to make it to their morning classes, a distinctive sound rises above the rest: the chirp of students badging in at one of the three scanners located at the entrance of the building under the watchful eye of receptionist Sami Aday. But how does he manage the entire system—and what do other Chicago high schools do without a Sami?

The system, which Latin has used since 2006, monitors students’ presence in the building in case of an emergency or in case a student’s whereabouts need to be tracked to see if they have entered the school that day.

Director of Operations Chanel King said, “If we believe a student is inside, but they’ve actually left, someone from my team or a first responder may risk their own life going in to find them when they could already be outside in Lincoln Park or at Starbucks.”

Even though it is a nearly impossible task, part of Sami’s role is to keep mental track of every student in the building to better assist first responders in case of an emergency. One thing that helps Sami keep a mental tally is his ability to memorize students’ names, which he does every year.

“When I say someone's name, I get to memorize it, and I would know if they're in the building or not,” Sami said. “And a lot of times, I will notice [if] there's a student who hasn't been here in a while.”

When a student badges in, their name and photo appear on the front computers that Sami and other front desk staff manage. This system helps them see if a student skips badging in, but oftentimes, Sami can tell just by looking at the students walking by.

“Everybody forgets their badges. I actually have this saying that I haven't had a perfect day [of everyone badging in] yet,” Sami said. “Someday, I hope I will have a perfect day.”

Sometimes when Sami's hopes of a perfect day get shattered, he gets to at least revel in the humor of a funny excuse. Some of Sami’s favorite reasons for students forgetting their badges include “my dog ate it” and “my mom took it.” If students forget their badge for a few days in a row, Sami requires them to buy a new one; new IDs cost $25 for students.

Senior Quinn McDonough is no stranger to the process of acquiring a new badge.

“I think I have had five IDs over four years,” he said. “I am currently down to two. I have one, and Sami keeps the other.”

On the day that badging data was tracked, 236 out of the 240 students who entered the building between 8:15 and 9 a.m. badged in or signed in. The badgeless four came in amid a large crowd, getting them past the scanners. Sami noticed and scolded one.

Although most Latin students badge in and out, schools like Francis W. Parker use alternate systems to track student movement. At Parker, students scan an iPad with a QR code to get into the building. With no Sami-like figure to hold students accountable, Parker has had problems that have led to collective consequences.

Parker senior Audrey Tai said, “A few years ago, the freshman grade heads said that since only half of the grade was signing in every day, they would not let them leave campus during the day.”

When a Forum reporter sought to enter Parker to investigate their system further, she faced three steps of identification. First, she clicked a button that sent a buzz to the security guard in the entryway, who approved her entry. Then, as she did not have a student QR code, the front desk security guard explained that this was as far as she could go without permission.

Slightly different from Parker, New Trier’s system consists of ID scanners similar to Latin, with a manual type-in option in case a student forgets their ID. However, according to New Trier senior Honor Dold, their system differs from Latin in a number of ways, including the presence of multiple security guards.

“When you leave, you don’t necessarily scan out,” she said. “If I have a free period, I am allowed to leave, and then when I come back, I scan in [again].”

New Trier’s system differs from Latin’s because New Trier seniors can leave the school without signing out, while the other students must have a parent sign them out.

Similar to New Trier, Walter Payton College Prep does not require students to badge out at all. Students can check in through an app in the morning in addition to physical IDs. The school encourages students to sign in, but the system solely tracks attendance. The school does not punish students who do not sign in.

Payton junior Dash Farbrother said, “To be honest, the system is kind of useless.”

A reporter was able to walk straight into Payton, a drastic difference from only being allowed into Parker’s separate entryway. Upon entering Payton, the reporter saw metal detectors and a sign-in desk but was able to glide straight around them for both entry and exit.

Unlike Walter Payton and New Trier, badging out at Latin is just as important as badging in, and Sami makes sure that people remember to badge out.

Freshman Lexi Fischer said, “One time, my friend was already out the door, and Sami made them come back in the school [to badge out].”

Senior Francesca Santori has known Sami and used the system for all four years of high school.

She said, “I’m not really sure how Sami knows every person who walks through the door, but whatever he does works. Everyone loves Sami.”