Safety and Security in 3A and 3B
In Jeffco Schools, we are fortunate to have a security department ranked as the Gold Standard, nationally. Our department of Security and Emergency Planning does their job so well, we don’t know about half of the incidents they address. They are proactive and they train – they train staff, they train students. We are lucky.
A key factor to being ranked The Gold Standard in School Security is Resources. It takes people, equipment, and funding.
In September, we posted a partial list of what safety and security items would be included in 3A and 3B should they pass, and we have shared that list again at the bottom of this article.
We invite you to review this report by 9 News on School Security in Colorado that aired October 6th.
“Earlier this year, 9Wants to Know asked all 178 school districts about their active-shooter preparedness and found not all Colorado schools train their students for an active shooter event, not every school does regular drills, and no one is checking if they are.”
In February of this year, 9 News aired this video.
Districts across the state are faced with the challenge of what kind and how much security they can offer their students and staff. Many small, rural and poor districts do not have the tax base that our suburban school districts have that enables them to fund the programs or staff required.
Maintaining our Gold Standard requires resources – people, equipment, and funding – especially funding.
The safety and security of our students and staff is not to be taken lightly. Our Director of Security and Emergency Planning takes it very seriously. As home to Columbine, especially, we, the Jeffco Community, need to take it seriously.
3A and 3B both contribute to our security and safety programs.
A few of the items that will be addressed with 3A and 3B:
- Updated classroom door locks as required by Colorado Fire Code and support the Reasonable Standard of Care under the Claire Davis Act (Senate Bill 213). The locks will afford teachers and students that ability to Lockdown much faster in a classroom in the event of an intruder in the building.
- Perimeter Security Controls that will prevent an intruder from easy entry into elementary and middle schools.
- A computer automated dispatch system to upgrade our emergency communications with first responders during a critical incident. The current system is 15 years old and not sustainable.
- Funding for the former Martenson Elementary to enhance student and community safety testing, training and evaluating best practice school safety programs.
- Installing video surveillance systems in schools that have inadequate or no existing coverage.
- Add three positions that will support student safety, threat assessment and campus security coverage.