Bloomfield Parents Fight Plan To Put Armed Guards In Schools

BLOOMFIELD, NJ — A group of Bloomfield parents and community members have launched a fight against a half-million dollar plan to put armed guards in Bloomfield’s elementary schools.

An online petition from Bloomfield Families for Sensible Safety states:

“Bloomfield's Board of Education has approved $500,000 in the budget for the 2018-2019 school year to be spent paying for armed guards stationed in the Bloomfield elementary schools. Many parents of the elementary school students do not want their children exposed to guns in the school environment. As a result of this action by the Board of Education, many ideas have sprung forth to increase security in the schools against perceived dangers without bringing firearms into elementary schools. Parents would like informed alternative security solutions implemented.”

Bloomfield school officials didn’t immediately reply to emails seeking comment about the budget item or the plan to place armed guards in the district. We will include any response we receive in this article.

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During a public hearing for the 2018-19 budget on April 24, Superintendent Salvatore Goncalves told attendees that the district plans to invest $550,000 to employ nine, armed class III officers and expand "contracted security services." (Watch a video of the meeting below; Goncalves’ statements about armed guards begins at the 14:24 mark)

“Unfortunately, we live in very dangerous times,” Goncalves said. “One of the things that we’re going to do for September is put armed class 3 police officers in our elementary schools and the early childhood center.”

Goncalves said that one of the goals of having armed guards was to shift the “awesome responsibility that now lies on school secretaries of who is entering a building and who is not.”

The superintendent acknowledged that the initiative would be "expensive” and would be part of the budget moving forward. “But I think that we can all agree that it’s about time,” he added.

Several attendees at the April 24 meeting later spoke in opposition to the armed guard plan. According to meeting minutes:

• “A citizen voiced concerns that the budget process was not transparent, he had a problem with investing $550,000 for school security whereas it took the district four years to have world language teachers in place. The district needed to look into the ability to sustain the costs of security moving forward.”
• “Another citizen echoed the concerns regarding the lack of early availability of the budget information and had concerns about the school security initiative. The citizen is a professor in criminal justice and stated that ID system and armed guard would not deter school violence. She urged the board to reconsider the spending.”
• “Another citizen also had the same concerns with the two previous citizens who spoke regarding school security. ‘Armed guards would not protect our students,’ [the citizen said].”

The topic came up again at the May 8 board of education meeting. (Watch the video below)

According to minutes, Board President Jill Fischman spoke to attendees about the armed guard plan, calling it a decision backed by "professionals":

“[Board President] Jill Fischman spoke of school security and Level III officers, and about the BHS forum that was held regarding school security. She indicated that the decision to hire Class III security guards was not made in a vacuum. It was recommended by professionals. Our goal is to provide a safe learning environment to students. We will monitor and make necessary adjustments as we roll out the Class III pilot.”

Several residents again spoke out against armed guards in schools on May 8:

• “A citizen stated the following… He feels the board is making a mistake with the armed guards, and that we are reacting to a perceived threat.”
• “A citizen thanked the administration for considering the Class III security guards but feels she was uninformed regarding the decision. She stated it is no small thing to introduce firearms into the elementary schools. She asked if other alternative options were considered, and stated that the risks may outweigh the rewards.”
• “A parent stated that effective security is already in place, and armed guards is not the answer.”
• “A parent asked how the decision was made for armed security guards and stated that we do not need weapons, we need a holistic approach.”

On May 21, the Bloomfield Division of Public Safety posted the following notice its social media page:

"BPD will be hiring Special III Law Enforcement Officers to work as School Resource Officers. Applicants must be a retired NJ Police Officer (within the past 3 yrs) and must be under the age of 65."

In March, students at Bloomfield High School participated in the national #ENOUGH rallies, which were timed to coincide with the one-month anniversary of the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. (Watch a video of the walkout below)

• See related article: Bloomfield Students: School Walkout Against Gun Violence (WATCH)

The Bloomfield school district has seen at least two gun-related incidents so far this year.

Earlier this month, police arrested a 19-year-old Bloomfield High School student after he was allegedly seen flashing a BB gun in the school cafeteria.

• See related article: Bloomfield Student Arrested, Brought BB Gun To School

In February, a student at Bloomfield High School caused a security stir when they posed with a weapon for a photo shared to social media. The caption to the photo makes a "derogatory and inflammatory reference" to a fatal school shooting.

• See related article: Bloomfield Student's Gun Photo Causes Stir; Cops Say 'No Threat'

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Photo: YouTube/Bengal Broadcasts (Bloomfield students hold walkout on March 14, 2018)