State Safety Report Highlights Concern Areas in Schools

The Tennessee Department of Education’s ‘Safety First’ report highlights several areas needing improvement regarding school security.

Putnam County’s Deputy Director of Schools, Corby King, says the school system has already begun addressing several of those issues.

“Some of those areas that were identified as needing improvement were also identified in Putnam County,” King says. “We’re utilizing money we received from the safety grant to address those areas. The areas we’re utilizing that money is to increase surveillance coverage in our buildings with video cameras and video systems.”

King says increasing surveillance on school grounds will be vital if there were ever an emergency situation. Schools in Tennessee scored 2.8 out of four total points in the category covering the documentation and monitoring of activity on school grounds.

“We can’t be on all parts of the campus at all times, so if we hear that there’s something going on at one area of the campus, someone can look at the camera, look at the threat, and know what they’re walking into when they get there,” King says. “Fortunately we don’t have a lot of issues like that in our school system, but having that coverage and the ability to see is a huge benefit to those who are responding.”

King says the district also looks to address the issue of vehicle access on school grounds. Vehicle control received the lowest overall performance rating on both primary and secondary school campuses.

“We’re using part of the grant money to install perimeter and vehicle control … concrete bollards at some of our schools to limit access and limit vehicles from being able to get to certain areas of our campuses,” King says.

King says one improvement made with grant funding was the addition of several School Resource Officers to increase security while giving students and faculty peace of mind.

“They are vital. They are part of our faculty, but they provide a sense of security to our students, faculty, and staff members,” King says, “and I hope that the parents also feel like it’s just a little bit safer having the officers there and in the building on a daily basis, building relationships with the students.”

The state’s report covers several aspects regarding school safety and security, including analysis on the impact of school population and economic standing. Despite concerns highlighted in the report, the state indicates many schools either met or exceeded expectations.