WICHITA, Kan. (KAKE) - Starting Friday, every student at West High will have to walk through metal detectors to get into school – something student Cheyenne Qualls says she wasn't excited about.

"I feel like it's gonna be a hassle through the mornings, because already with just getting our IDs checked, as soon as the buses hit, like the whole athletic entrance is crowded," said Qualls.

But during the demonstration Friday, she was the very first student to walk through and says she was pleasantly surprised.

"I thought it was gonna be worse than it is, because I when I heard detectors, I thought like, big metal detectors like how they have the game, and they're gonna have to go through our bags and stuff like that," said Qualls.

Wichita Schools Safety Director Terri Moses says these OPENGATE scanners use a brand new technology that knows the difference between things like a gun or laptop.

"We aren't just dealing with metal, one of the issues we had with metal detectors. And the reason we haven't gone to them a long time ago is that right now if I walked through a metal detector scanner with all of your battery packs on me, I would set it off. And that causes a disruption," said Moses.

But with OPENGATE, you simply walk right through. If there's no weapon, the light stays green, and the student starts their day like normal. But if a gun is detected, the light turns red, beeps, and the school employee stationed at that entrance will investigate.

Qualls says she was skeptical at first, but after seeing them in action Thursday, she feels good about it.

"I think it is just more of a reassurance kind of a comforting feeling that if there were to be [a gun] brought, it would be caught," said Qualls.

Moses says it's hard to estimate how long it will take to get more scanners in at the other schools. She says it all depends on how fast the manufacturer can get them here.

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The Wichita school district has begun receiving advanced metal detectors as part of a new safety measure approved by the Board of Education earlier this year. 

USD 259 said West High School at 820 South Osage has volunteered to be the first school to use the screening devices beginning Friday. It's unclear when the district's other high schools will begin using them. 

"The OPENGATE scanners are designed to automatically scan backpacks and bags for metal threats, including firearms," the district said in a release. "The devices are portable and can be moved throughout the schools for different events as another layer of safety precautions."

This is what the scanners look like. WPS Security Director Terri said they're so advanced that people won't need to empty pockets, and workers won't need to search bags. They came with a price tag of around $1.5 million.

The proposal came on the heels of multiple different cases of guns being found at Wichita high schools, but Moses said the proposal had been in the works for years. The BOE passed it 7 to 0 in September.