Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Schools unveil new security measures
Douglas gets metal detectors, clear backpacks; all campuses will have additional safeguards
Metal detectors, transparent backpacks and a heavy police presence will be part of the new normal at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High.
Superintendent Robert Runcie announced new security measures Wednesday in an attempt to calm students and parents, who have been on edge since a former student killed 17 students and staffers Feb. 14.
“It’s going to be a substantial change from where we are today, and it’s going to create some inconvenience,” Runcie said. “But folks are going to have to realize you’re going to have to accept some level of inconvenience for the enhanced security that’s going to be implemented.”
Starting today, eight Florida Highway Patrol troopers supplied by Gov. Rick Scott will be on guard outside entrances to the Parkland school, in addition to about a half-dozen law enforcement personnel from the district and Broward Sheriff ’s Office inside the building.
Spring Break begins Friday, and the heavy police presence will resume when students come back April 2.
At that time, students will be given clear backpacks; no other backpacks will be allowed on campus, Runcie said.
The district also plans to use hand-held metal detecting wands for students and others at several school entrances, Runcie said. These are currently used at School Board meetings and some events, but Stoneman Douglas will be the first school in the district using them on a daily basis.
Sheri Kuperman, who has three children at Stoneman Douglas, said she’s open to the new security measures.
“We go through metal detectors when we go the airport,” she said. “I don’t know if it’s going to stop anything or not.”
Ricci Nelson, the parent of a senior, said she didn’t know if it’s a good idea.
“It’s going from one extreme to the other,” she said.
The district is considering lengthening the school day at Stoneman Douglas to accommodate the extra time it will take for more than 3,200 students to go through security, Runcie said.
The measures come after several incidents this week further rattled students, parents and teachers.
Tuesday, two students were arrested after allegedly bringing knives to school and a third was arrested for allegedly making an online threat.
That came a day after Zachary Cruz, whose brother Nikolas Cruz is charged in the school massacre, was charged with trespassing on campus. Zachary Cruz is being held in jail on $500,000 bond.
Runcie said the district is also taking steps to increase security at all schools. They include:
Effective immediately, all safety rules are being enforced, including requiring students and staff to wear identification badges while on campus, locking classroom doors at all times, locking and securing exterior doors and gates throughout the day, and monitoring the campus regularly.
The district is conducting “code red” drills, or active shooter training, throughout the year at all schools. “We are working with law enforcement agencies to evaluate the protocols and frequency of code red training and drills for all schools for the next school year,” Runcie said.
The district is upgrading surveillance camera systems at all schools. The work will be completed by June.
The district has expedited the completion of “single point of entry” measures for campus visitors, which use fencing and door systems to limit access to an entrance. Runcie said the work will be completed at all schools by early 2019.
The district will use $8.5 million in new state funding to provide at least one school resource officer in all schools starting in the fall.
The district will use $6 million in state money to expand mental health services beginning in the 2018-19 school year.
The district will develop a security risk assessment for each school to be completed by August.
The district will apply for a share of $98 million in state money to improve the physical security of schools. The state expects to award the money in early 2019.
“Keeping our students, staff and schools safe is the responsibility of everyone in our community,” Runcie said.
But Broward Commissioner Michael Udine said Zachary Cruz’s ability to get on campus was a “major setback for what they’re trying to do” at the school.
“Parents don’t have confidence to send their kids back to school,” said Udine, who represents the Parkland area. “We need to have police officers out there that are engaged, doing their job.”
A Broward Sheriff’s Office deputy assigned to guard the school was caught sleeping in his car. He was suspended with pay pending an internal investigation.