TOWAMENCIN – “I’m going to try to change the school for the better, and let people know I’m here for them. I want everyone to understand there are rules that need to be followed. Our ultimate goal is to make sure everybody is safe here and make sure the kids can move on to the next level and make something of themselves,” said North Penn High School security guard, Bernard Jones, reflecting on his new position as the head of security at North Penn High School.

For almost ten years, Jones, who most at North Penn High School know as Bernie, has been making sure everyone is safe and making people smile. In his new position as head of security at NPHS, not much will change except the more direct role he will have in ensuring the best policies and practices are in place. Recently he had been taking initiative hoping the promotion was coming, and finally it was made official. He now is in charge, telling people where to go and making sure all the assignments get done.

“If there are any problems in the school building, people can come directly to me. Hours and everything are the same, so I really don’t have a change there. As far as the school goes, I plan on being more open to communication, and being a more friendly force to the students and the staff,” said Jones.

Jones’ biggest goal he wants to accomplish with his new authority is the communication in the school. He sees communication as key to a school as big as North Penn and plans to enforce that more in the school.

“I want to be in a position where I could make a difference by implementing policies or making sure things are done the right way, or the way I see fit. I like interacting with the kids and the staff, and open communication. This is a great school, but the only problem is we don’t communicate enough with each other to know what’s going on. The way I see it, the students should be able to come to us, the staff should be able to come to us, and everyone should be able to come to us with any problems anyone has,” said Jones.

His communication skills are what made him such a well-known security guard around North Penn. With a love for talking and communicating with people, he never fails to put a smile on the faces of people he encounters in the building.

“I really like making connections with the students. I also like to talk to all the staff members and teachers. I’m a friendly, people person, so I love that part of the job,” said Jones.

Jones naturally gravitated to this job since he grew up playing football at William Tennent  and has always been a people person. As a security guard he gets to be involved in North Penn sports and of course interact with the students. With a passion to work with people and help them out at the same time, he knew this was the job for him.

“Basically what I do here is secure the building and make sure everybody is safe. I also make sure there is no trouble going on, keep all the strangers out, and give a lot of directions, most of the time making sure people know where they need to go. We are basically readers of this school,” Jones explained.

Before becoming a security guard here, he worked in loss prevention of stores. The jobs have some similarities in tasks, especially with having to deal with people. The difference is, as a loss prevention officer, one is usually dealing with people in a bad way.

“Here, yes I’m security and breaking up a fight, but also I’m talking to kids and engaging with kids in a more fun way at times. So, it’s not always the bad, there’s the good that goes with the bad here and that’s what I like,” added Jones.

Unfortunately, North Penn does have its occasional bad days when there are incidents such as fights, which Jones also has a responsibility in handling. He tries to urge students to tell an adult if they are having a problem with another student, and that fighting is never the answer.

“After a fight, I try to get the students calmed down as much as I can and separate them. Once they are calm I try to get their side of the story because there is always two sides of every story. Everybody sees things differently, but we try to see what is caught on camera to use that as well. Then we sort it out from there, and take it to the principals to see what they want to do.

I think people should learn how to talk and communicate better, and if somebody is bothering you, take it to authority. Do not take it to your own hands, the best act is to just walk away,” explained Jones.    

In these moments, Jones feels people have such a bad perception of kids, when most of the kids are good. Even for the kids who make mistakes, Jones still tries to put a smile on their face and make good connection with them, while also urging them to get involved.

“Hopefully I have a good impact on the kids. A lot of times kids come to me with their problems and I try to help them. I try to make them a better person, that’s what I like to do. I like to see every kid be successful in life. I like the fact that it’s very diverse and there is so much to do at North Penn. If you can’t find something to do or be a part of here, then you are not trying, ” said Jones.

When Bernie is not at school engaging with students and faculty, he is at home spending time with his family. He has 4 little girls ranging in age from 6 to 21. He also plays video games and watches sports in his free time; although, working between 8 and 15 hours a day, he does not always get free time.  

Some may think that’s a lot of time for a security guard to be working, but Jones is at the events and activities before and after school. Besides events, he and the other security guards have the responsibility of keeping everyone safe, especially on occasions where emergencies occur, such as the fire two years ago.

“The most chaotic situation was probably the fire. You plan for those things, but then when they actually happen, you are not expecting it and it’s chaotic. Especially the aftermath and everybody hanging outside, that was pretty scary. I learned that at any time something can happen. You have to be prepared and be aware of everything going on around you because in moment’s notice anything can happen,” Jones said.

On Ordinary days at North Penn, Jones gets to do what he does best, which is make people smile. If he’s not occupied by anything, he’s having a conversation with someone, which he sees as the best part of the job.

“The best part of my day being at North Penn is talking with the students. I like joking around and making connections with the students. A lot of people try to talk to me because I’m a friendly person, and I always try to leave people with a smile,” Jones.