When four of the five candidates for superintendent met with the public to discuss the issues on May 17th, the following question was asked: “In light of the Virginia Tech tragedy, what are your plans for making each campus safer? I’d like to use this space to expand on the two-minute answer I was allowed that night.
Several years ago, as a teacher at Weir Attendance Center, I was very alarmed one morning when I heard about the latest school shooting. I’m not sure now which shooting it was. There have been so many of them. I think it was either the murders in Pearl, MS or Columbine, CO. In church that Sunday we prayed for the victims and the hurting communities involved. I also mentioned that we, just because we lived in a quiet and beautiful country community, should not be unconcerned about our own schools’ safety.
Apparently, other parents felt the same. Some of them organized a meeting a few nights later in the school cafeteria. I’m not sure how much they accomplished, but everyone got to air their concerns and seemed to have felt better for having done so. The principal, who has long since gone, was very upset with me. He seemed to think that I had caused the meeting to take place. He was giving me more credit than I deserved. Ironically, he was annoyed with what the school’s parents and I thought was a good thing. Had I been principal I would have called the meeting myself.
A few years later I heard about another school shooting. This one was in Florida, I believe. A student murdered his favorite teacher, a male, 10th grade English teacher. This upset me to no end. While I may have my faults (my wife would be happy to provide a list), I can honestly say that I have gotten along extremely well with the vast majority of my students. Some still visit me, even as adults. On top of that, I am male, and was the only 10th grade English teacher at Weir! That latest shooting was getting a little too close to home for my comfort.
I say all this to let you know that school security has been a major concern of mine for over a decade. Our schools in Choctaw County are especially vulnerable due to the physical make-up of our campuses. As our campuses have grown over the years we have had to add buildings, and more buildings mean more doors.
As superintendent, the safety of our children would be a top priority to me. Realistically, there’s just so much we can do with the money available. Therefore, I would pursue whatever grant money is available to increase security. Beyond that, there are some things we can do right now that would cost very little.
First of all, we should do what other districts all over the state are doing. Keep all doors on every campus locked and install an intercom at the main entrance. In between classes, when students must pass from building to building, a teacher who would normally be posted in the hall by his or her classroom door, should be posted at the building entrances to allow students access. While this would be inconvenient, the safety of our kids should take precedence over convenience.
I’d also do the following: I’d also make sure that every classroom has a working two-way intercom. I’d see to it that a least one person in the district became an expert in the calibration and use of the sophisticated metal detectors that we already have in some of our schools, and require that they be used. I’d see to it that all staff are informed about and trained in procedures already in place for crisis management, and review and fine-tune those procedures periodically.
In addition to these and any other steps we can come up with, I’d make it my policy to be open and honest with parents on safety issues. It’s time we stop sweeping incidents under the rug and pretend they never happened. When we do that, we cause rumors to start flying around the community. Instead of making parents feel more secure, which I assume is the intent of covering up an incident, we actually make parents feel less secure because the rumors are always much worse than what really happened.
Until next time, may God bless you and your children.
Bob Mamrak
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