District Administration - September 2011 - (Page 74)

with $2.8 million in undesignated bond money. “Be sure that each area supports the others,” he says. Entry Control The first security priority for schools is always student and staff safety, with entry control as the main focus, say Marks and Borland. Fewer entrances make for safer schools, even though that can mean “herding a lot of students through one doorway,” Marks says. Tod Schneider, a private security consultant and crime prevention specialist for the Eugene (Ore.) Police Department, says his work in CPTED circles confirms this trend of installing fewer doors to reduce the risk of intruders slipping into schools. “I’ve never visited a school where I couldn’t get a friendly student or staff member to let me in through a locked door just by standing near it,” says Schneider. New school designs, such as that of Cesar Chavez Elementary in Eugene (Ore.) Public Schools, constructed in 2004, feature fewer entrances and exits. In 74 September 2011 Designing Safe Facilities The Academy School District 20 in Colorado Springs, Colo., has a 24/7 command center at the central office building. Security officer Michael Huntingford, above, watches surveillance cameras. Last spring, the district solved an attempted sexual assault via the video. many cases, they also allot space for metal detectors and security guards near doors, says Marks, though metal detectors can instill a feeling of mistrust in the school. Entrances should also be well-lit, equipped with alarms, locked from the inside, and require nonschool personnel to undergo screening before admittance. Once inside, visitors should sign in at the main office, state the reason for their visit, and don identification badges. Schneider, who has conducted hundreds of security vulnerability assessments, says sometimes schools don’t see obvious solutions to entryway security problems. Scio Middle School in the Scio (Ore.) School District had a horseshoe-shaped yard with an open end to accommodate a weekly garbage pickup. Installing fencing at the end of the yard and placing the Dumpster outside the fence was an easy solution. The school’s music building also had an entrance outside the secured area, so security doors were left unlocked during school hours to provide access for students. Schneider pointed out that cutting a new door into the back of the building would allow students access from within the secure area of the school. “Now, all rooms that have students in them are behind locked doors,” says Cecilia Swigart, the district’s business manager. Interior entryways are another important aspect of school design. During the Virginia Tech shootings, teachers couldn’t lock classroom doors, so new door hardware and punch-number access doors now allow teachers to lock doors from the inside. California law AB 211, the Classroom Safety Locks bill, requires all newly constructed schools to have inside-classroom door locks. Another trend in new school designs, says Marks, is the locking of outside doors to the gym, cafeteria and other public spaces, with inside push bars so students can easily get out of buildings in case of emergencies. Video Intercoms, Smart Cards Identifying specific security concerns before updating buildings is key to making smart investments that address District Administration

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration - September 2011

District Administration - September 2011
Contents
From the Editor
Letters
News Update
Tech Update
District Profile
Administrator Profile
Conversations
They Work Hard for the Money
The Road to Rigor
District-Charter Collaborations on the Rise
Designing Safe Facilities
Tony Smith Tackles Oakland
Product Focus
New Products
Research Center
Crisis Response
Going Mobile
Professional Opinion
Student Counsel

District Administration - September 2011