Security Recommendations Released For Cherokee Schools

CANTON, GA — Nearly three months after a gunman stormed Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and killed 17 students and faculty members in Parkland, Florida, a committee tasked with coming up with initiatives to make sure this kind of tragedy won't happen in Cherokee County has released a slew of recommendations that would improve safety and security at district schools.

These recommendations were touched on by School Police Chief Mark Kissel at the Cherokee County School Board's meeting on Thursday, May 3. The Ad Hoc Safety and Security Committee, which was initially formed after the Sandy Hook tragedy, regrouped earlier this year at the direction of Superintendent Dr. Brian Hightower following the Feb. 14 shooting that shook the country to its core.

The committee is made up of key district staff, principals, law enforcement officials, parents and community stakeholders. Kissel said a total of four meetings were held over the last six to eight weeks, and involved touring school campuses, gathering and reviewing feedback from parents, talking with student delegates of the school board, getting input from an external expert on the district's safety and security measures, researching trends and statistics and compiling its list of recommendations.

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Kissel said CCSD's commitment to safety stems from the aftermath of the Columbine massacre, "which was a game changer for every school district in the United States." CCSD already has an emergency response team and its practices are so well known that the School Police Department receivess calls each year from their counterparts around the country wanting to know how they can replicate Cherokee's system.

CCSD's first and only police chief notes this process doesn't occur overnight. Rather, the process of having safe and secure campus environments stems from system leadership. The district benefits from a school board that's included safe and secure campuses as part of its major system priorities, the chief said.

"That lays the solid foundation from which we build upon," Kissel added.

Some of the recommendations include suggested improvements to shore up security at facilities, hiring more POST-certified and armed officers, training employees and students on emergency response and making sure students know when to speak up when they come across comments, statements or behavior that could be interpreted as danger to their school or even a classmate crying out for help. You can view the full list of recommendations by clicking here.

The committee does note that it opposes any plan that would allow teachers or other staff members — with the exception of certified police officers — to possess or carry a firearm on school district properties.

Kissel added the Cherokee Sheriff's Office is eyeing is possibly conducting a countywide emergency response exercise in conjunction with the city police departments. Kissel states Sheriff Frank Reynolds is in the process of finding a suitable location for that operation, which would take place during the summer months before the start of the 2018-19 school year.

Kissel said that while the state has indicated it will consider allocating funds for safety and security measures local school districts can utilize, all the money in the world won't make a difference if there's not a systemic and pragmatic solution to ensuring school shootings such as Parkland and Columbine won't happen on CCSD campuses.

"You can throw all the money at safety and security, but if you don't use it wisely, it may not be paying the dividends you want it to be paying.”

Superintendent Dr. Hightower noted the state funding will be in the form of grant funding, and as much as $16 million could be up for grabs by systems across Georgia. If CCSD gets enough money to install a security foyer or two at a school, that could save the school board $300,000 to $500,000, he noted.

"Some of the recommendations don't require any expense, while some may take us several years to fully implement, but we're committed to meeting the goals of every one," the superintendent added.

School Board member Clark Menard said he liked the "softer" recommendation of encouraging students to report behavior or comments that could become a problem down the road. If the district can add more personnel to beef up security that would be great, but intervention methods “probably serves (us) as much, if not more, than sealing up some doorways.”

In other business, school board members approved the upcoming three-year block of school calendars – 2019-20, 2020-21, 2021-22 – which all follow the longtime “balanced calendar” format popular with students, parents and district employees, and all continue with an August start date and May end date.

In addition to approving future school calendars, the School Board also adjusted next school year’s calendar to accommodate for needed professional development and inclement weather make-up days. The previously designated Friday, Dec. 21 school holiday will instead be a regular school day, and Columbus Day, Monday, Oct. 8, will become a school holiday for students. In a one-time adjustment for next school year, the Feb. 20-22, 2019 potential inclement weather make-up days will instead be scheduled as regular school days to be cancelled if make-up days are not needed.

“We are committed to permanently restoring the full week-long February Break beginning with the 2019-20 school year by using our Canvas online learning system when schools close for inclement weather,” Dr. Hightower said. “This is a big mind-shift for our students, parents and teachers, so we need the next school year to prepare high-quality online lessons and test our capacity for true blended learning. The last three days of February Break next school year will instead be regular schools days, but these days (Feb. 20-22, 2019) will be cancelled if our winter is mild.”

Dr. Hightower shared a brief budget planning report with board members,to keep them up to date as work continues to prepare the recommended budget for presentation later this month. In order to stay competitive with compensation and starting teacher salaries in other metro Atlanta counties, Dr. Hightower announced plans to give all eligible employees a locally funded 1-percent raise and increase the starting CCSD's entry-level educator pay to $43,000 a year.

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