Wren School Security Blog

Earlier this week a local news station profiled Creekside Elementary school in Suffolk, Virginia. The story highlighted the challenges the elementary school has in maintaining adequate security between portable classrooms and the central building (WAVY.com, “Testing school security in Suffolk” February 22, 2011). Currently, second and third grade students walk in pairs without adult supervision from the portables to the main building, which leaves them exposed to potentially dangerous elements. Although there is a fence, it’s easy to climb over it or walk around the school within the fence’s perimeter.

Of course, it’s unlikely that a security incident would occur, as schools remain very safe places despite the number of security issues that arise every year. What’s unfortunate in this situation is that the principal has no solution to the problem. She acknowledges that the situation is not perfect and is a “work in progress,” but she clearly knows that a security loophole exists.

Overall, there are likely many elementary schools across the country that have similar security loopholes. What can be done to close them? Obviously, security funding is one solution, but during the current economic environment, most schools struggle to maintain funding levels simply to operate their schools. Escorting students at all times also is unrealistic given the resource constraints. Ultimately, a better way to deal with this particular situation is to think ahead before adding the portable classrooms in the first place. By conducting a security assessment prior to installing the portables, it’s likely that a security professional would have identified the security risks and made recommendations to keep it as secure as possible. Of course, with funding issues the result may have been the same, but at least the principal could explain the situation more effectively to the school community than simply saying a “work in progress.”

How does your school manage security loopholes?

In late January, Jay Matthews, a Washington Post education columnist, wrote about his reaction to the lockdown of eight Los Angeles high schools after a shooting at another nearby high school (“Overdoing school security” January 28, 2011). Overall, he wonders how schools should balance the need for safety when an incident occurs in the vicinity of the school vs. the need for education. As he says, teachers tried to conduct classes during the lockdown, but it’s difficult for students and teachers to focus under those circumstances.

What are your school district’s criteria for locking down a school? How does the lockdown impact teaching? How likely are you to lockdown a school when an incident happens at another school?

Earlier this week the National Association of School Resource Officers (NASRO) announced that nominations are being accepted for the 2011 Wren Solutions School Resource Officer (SRO) Scholarship Award. The award is part of a $10,000 donation that Wren, providers of physical security solutions that create safe learning environments, pledged over a four year time period.

The annual scholarship, now in its third year, was created to help SROs further their education, thereby bringing even more expertise and security strategies to protect the schools they serve. The deadline for all nominations is April 8, 2011. This new winner will be announced at NASRO’s 21st Annual National Conference to be held June 27 through July 1, 2011 in Orlando, Florida. The award will be offered and administered through NASRO.

Please consider passing this information along to deserving SROs who do so much to helps schools provide safe learning environments.

Earlier this week a gun accidentally fired inside a Gardena High School (Los Angeles) student’s backpack, wounding two classmates (Source: Neon Tommy ‘Annenberg Digital News’, January 20, 2011, School Security Experts Say Reform Needed After L.A. School Shootings). Subsequently, the incoming school district superintendent said that the high school had violated the policy of conducting random weapons searches. Whether or not random searches would have prevented the incident, it begs the question of why the policy of random searches had been ignored.

According to the article, University of Virginia Professor Dewey Cornell said that “security measures can generate a false sense of security.” He calls for more funding for the study of school safety rather than spending on safety measures with little evidence of effectiveness. Kenneth Trump, President of National School Safety and Security Services echoes this approach, adding that security guidelines should be “reviewed annually or on some regular schedule.”

Overall, what surprises me about articles like this one is that it neglects to mention anything about school security assessments. Mr. Trump acknowledges this when he says that the issue with Gardena High may be the “disconnect between policy and practice.” It’s likely that Mr. Trump would agree that policies need to be tested, and assessments enable schools to test their security programs to determine if they are working well. Certainly, a yearly assessment along with periodic updates would have identified the lack of random weapons searches at Gardena High School.

What would an article look like, if your school experienced a similar incident as Gardena? Have you been testing your school security program?

When security incidents occur at schools, such as the shooting of a principal and assistant principal at a Nebraska high school last week, schools often make an effort to improve their security programs (Source: WOWT.com, January 6, 2011, Improving School Security). In many cases security upgrades are warranted, as schools replace obsolete technology, as well as implement new programs with the hope of preventing or at least mitigating future incidents. Additionally, some incidents prompt drastic changes, such as the call for metal detectors, that may not be the best course of action.

Overall, the highlighted article does an adequate job of explaining some of the improvements made in Nebraska schools after other incidents in the wake of last week’s shooting. However, what’s missing from the article is any mention of school security assessments. Many schools across the country conduct assessments at least once per year (sometimes more) to determine what’s working right from a safety and security perspective and what can be improved. They also help schools understand the areas of risk that need to be addressed, as school climates change annually. When incidents occur, whether at their own schools or others in the area, and school officials call for security upgrades, assessments provide them with a baseline. Here’s the status of our school before the incident, highlighting specific areas that need improvement. Without an assessment in place, it’s easy to respond with knee-jerk reactions, which may not be the best way to improve security.

Does your district refer to your school assessments after incidents occur to provide guidance about what security upgrades should be made?

Last month I alerted you about preparing for mischief during the holidays. As follow-up to that posting, Huntsville (Alabama) police arrested a man for burglary during the holidays for breaking into the Huntsville Center for Information Technology late at night (Source: WAFF.com, December 30, 2010, School burglary arrest in Huntsville). School security officers noticed the man on video inside the building and detained him when he tried to leave.

It’s likely that the perpetrator thought security would ignore a school during the holiday break, but clearly this school prepared for just such an event. While the article doesn’t provide details about the expense of maintaining security along with video surveillance during the holidays, the money is definitely well-spent. In addition to the hard cost of property theft and/or damage, the soft cost of student and staff uneasiness after a security incident often is significantly higher. Preparation and vigilance in this case paid off. Hopefully, the publicity of this case will deter future thieves from preying on this school, as well as others.

A hallway brawl at a New England high school generated a great deal of frustration among 250 parents who grilled administrators during a meeting earlier this week. The parents asked school officials several questions, including whether they were warned that a fight was brewing and why the school doesn’t have an alert system to communicate with parents when trouble occurs (Source: Hartford Courant, December 20, 2010, Manchester Parents Seek Answers about High School Security). In addition to the school officials announcing new or reinforced security measures since the fight, the police noted that more officers would be stationed in and around the school.

Overall, the additional officers should help prevent or mitigate incidents like this in the future because more eyes and ears (natural surveillance) will likely lead to finding out about potential fights before they get out of hand. What’s not mentioned in this article is the role of technology and how it can also assist the school with these types of issues. Innovative physical security software solutions, such as video surveillance and access control systems, may also have event management capabilities, allowing schools to identify potentially dangerous trends, so they can deal with them before they occur. For example, if the same group of students are caught loitering, fighting, and/or disrupting class over a series of days, then the software will alert key school officials that there may be a pattern that requires investigation. A principal can then create an issue of those events and investigate the students that may be involved. In this scenario school officials can work with those students, find out the problem, and cool them off to prevent an incident.

Does your physical security software help you investigate issues before they become incidents?

Recently, a New Jersey school experienced three separate security incidents over the course of two days. All three of them included individuals trespassing in the school. Fortunately, the district’s security procedures were effective, and no students were in danger. (Source: NewsTranscript, November 24, 2010, School security tested by 3 recent incidents).

While the school dealt with each incident appropriately, the district plans to upgrade its security program, by locking school doors at all times. Previously, doors were only locked during the school day, but not before and after school. Additionally, the district will implement an access control system for authorized individuals, so they can use a swipe card to access the building when doors are locked. This should eliminate the need for teachers to have a custodian let them in the school during off peak times.

Overall, the school should be commended for dealing with three incidents in two days successfully. Clearly, staff members were trained to notice individuals who shouldn’t be in the school and prevented them from doing anything harmful. With the security upgrade of locking school doors at all times, the district should communicate the new procedures to the parents. While an information session was held, the school should take extra care to inform parents when they drop off and pick up students, having extra staff available for the first couple of weeks to ensure a smooth transition.

Does your school permit access before and after school? How do you oversee who’s inside your school?

Late last month vandals damaged “to the point of destruction” a New York high school’s security vehicle on school property. (Source: NewCityPatch, December 1, 2010, Vandals Heavily Damage School Security Vehicle at Clarkstown S. H.S.). While the police investigate, using surveillance video to assist, the school superintendent believes that the incident may have been the result of a school rivalry.

Regardless of the reason behind the vandalism, one other question remains. How prepared is the school for responding to the incident and moving forward with its security program? While this incident took place at the end of the Thanksgiving weekend, the winter holiday is upon us, and often there are stories of vandalism and robbery of schools during the break. Is your school district prepared to keep your school safe and secure during the break? What plans have you put in place to mitigate the harm from any potential incidents? Moreover, if there is an incident, do you have a communication plan to ease the concerns of students, parents and staff who may return to class to face a damaged classroom and missing equipment?

Overall, it’s critical for schools to understand their level of vulnerability to theft and vandalism and the potential impact an incident would have on the school community, especially during long breaks. Based on their own security assessments, for example, high risk schools should have a system in place to monitor the school for suspicious behavior during holidays. For some schools that may mean a physical security system that integrates video surveillance, access control and alarms, which can notify the right people in case of an incident. Other lower risk schools may be fine with a custodian that checks on the school each day during the break, so that any incidents can be dealt with as quickly as possible.

What’s your plan for dealing with security incidents during the holidays?

This week I provided a guest post on the SAFE Team blog. SAFE Team works with K-12 schools to help them engage their staff and student families to collaborate on improving personal responsibility, safety and education in schools. Scott Huse is SAFE Team’s Chief Inspirational Officer. Thanks to Scott for the opportunity to participate in his blog.

How does your district partner with families to improve safety and education?