Just over a year ago, after another tragic school shooting in Parkland, Fla., I wrote an op-ed on school security (see “Opinion: Security is top of mind at Battle Ground Public Schools,” March 14, 2018). In the article, I spoke about the safety and security measures that Battle Ground Public Schools has in place, from regular safety drills and visitor check-in procedures to school security teams, security cameras, and ensuring that district staff wears identification badges.
I also mentioned that the bond, which failed to obtain the required 60 percent yes vote in both the February and April 2018 elections, would have provided funding for school safety and security. Since the bond failed, some of you may be wondering what the district plans to do about our older buildings that have multiple entrances and access points.
That is the question we posed ourselves, and have been considering given our limited resources. Last fall, we applied with the City of Battle Ground for a grant that would have provided some funding for more secure door locks, but that funding source did not materialize. Additionally, our partners with the Battle Ground Education Foundation offered funding for safety improvements in some of our schools.
But before we took the next step, we wanted to make sure any dollars would be spent where the most need is. To that extent, we decided to bring in experts who could perform a safety assessment of the entire district and pinpoint our needs and priorities in the area of school safety and security.
For this task, we brought in consultants from 4Pointe, a school and community safety group that has completed assessments for schools across the nation. 4Point bases some of its assessment on the principles of “Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design” (CPTED). The CPTED framework holds that “the proper design and effective use of the built environment can lead to the reduction of crime and improvement in overall safety and security for schools and other facilities.”
After observing, filming and interviewing school administrators, security teams and custodians over the past several months, the 4Pointe representatives presented their findings to the school board and district staff at a board work session on March 25.
What we learned was that to create safer environments at our schools, we should begin with the outside and work our way into the buildings. Increasing student safety can be as simple and cost-effective as cutting back shrubbery and trees around buildings to reduce hiding places, to more costly changes such as additional and taller fencing, gates across driveways, alarms, key card-controlled entrances, and double entry systems that require visitors to buzz in and enter through two sets of doors.
When we looked at our larger high school campuses, in particular, the consultants shared their concern for how accessible these buildings are to outside visitors. Where we have fences, most are only four feet tall and easily scaled, and several have gates that are left open to neighborhoods during the school day. Many of our vehicle entrances and roads have no gated or control points for visitors.
As we thought about improving the security of our facilities, the board’s discussion quickly developed into a foundational question: What message do we want to send to our community about our schools? We certainly want our community and the citizens who help fund our schools through their tax dollars to have access to our facilities, but as the consultants cautioned, it’s also important for student safety for visitors to see that “the district is in control of the campus.”
For many of us who grew up in a different time, having schools with 7-foot fences, gated roadways and two doorways at entry points is a different mindset. It is, however, a different world, and for us, one where student safety and security is a top priority. As we look to revise our plan for future facility needs, we will be creating committees and surveying our community. We hope you will engage with us on this very important topic in the months to come.
{{tncms-inline content="<p class="p1"><em>Mark Ross is superintendent of Battle Ground Public Schools.</em></p>" id="3cef0787-7a6a-4fee-a819-a19f03c01295" style-type="bio" title="About the author" type="relcontent"}}
