The Carroll County Board of Education may soon decide whether to form a committee to further discuss the issue of school security.
Since the Dec. 14 school shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., Carroll County Public Schools has analyzed security measures at its buildings. At the Wednesday Board of Education meeting, Superintendent Steve Guthrie will ask the board to approve the formation of a security advisory committee, he said.
At Wednesday's meeting, Guthrie plans to recommend that the committee be comprised of school officials, community agency representatives, such as those from law enforcement and municipalities, and parents.
"We want to get all the appropriate agencies and the community involved in what we should do in our schools, if anything," Guthrie said.
After the shooting, Guthrie sent out an email to parents outlining school security initiatives, such as locking exterior doors and installing more surveillance cameras.
Assistant Superintendent of Administration Jonathan O'Neal met with the Carroll County Board of Commissioners to discuss the cost of some of the security measures, particularly the entry management systems.
It would cost an estimated $650,000 to install the systems at all schools without integrating them into the new fiber network. The Carroll County Public Network is on track to be completed in early 2013 and will be 110 miles long and connect 132 sites, including the county's public schools, the public library branches and Carroll Community College.
To integrate the systems into the fiber network, including the eight schools that currently have the system without integration into the network, it would cost about $950,000.
After discussion, the commissioners voted to make a capital budget transfer of $325,000 to the school system for the entry devices.
Guthrie said normally there would be a Board of Education discussion before going to the commissioners, but the school system felt they needed to immediately respond to concerns about security after the school shooting.
Many local parents have emailed Guthrie suggesting a variety of options, including installing cast iron doors or metal detectors and having armed guards. Some parents were against any measures that would restrict access to the school.
The committee, if created, would be on an accelerated track and maybe even need to meet multiple times a week. It would be asked to come up with long-term strategies that would increase school security.
The goal is to have the committee develop its priority list and present it to the board by late February or early March, O'Neal said.
If the committee is approved, invitations to possible members would be sent out after the board meeting on Jan. 9 or the next day.
"We've had no shortage of interest," O'Neal said. "We don't think we're going to have any problem finding the right people."
The committee, which could have approximately 15-20 members, would discuss security measures already in place and a timeline of when other measures should be implemented.
"We'll be able to bring a lot of information and data immediately into the committee," O'Neal said.
The security initiatives sent out by Guthrie were things the school system is already working on as funding allows or ideas from community members. Many measures will come down to prioritizing and funding, he said.
O'Neal said the committee will hopefully come up with a good balance as to which measures are appropriate and how extensive they should be.
"In some ways it could fundamentally change the way a school operates," he said.
The first priority of the school system has already been identified as installing the entry management systems, which is in the works but may be accelerated.
"Anything beyond that, we'll see what the committee comes up with," O'Neal said.
