North Little Rock school security plan urged

Board members seek policy, budget for increasing safety

North Little Rock School Board members have asked district leaders to draft a proposed policy and a budget for increasing safety and security at the district's 13 campuses.

The request comes in the aftermath of the Feb. 14 shooting deaths of 17 people at a Parkland, Fla., high school, which has prompted local, state and national leaders and organizations to call for ways to better ensure student safety.

North Little Rock board members asked for a draft policy and budget at a combination work session and special meeting Thursday night in which they also:

• Met privately for almost 30 minutes to discuss the employment of Superintendent Kelly Rodgers but took no action to extend Rodgers' contract that is set to expire at the end of the next school year, June 30, 2019.

• Talked about demolishing the vacant Poplar Street School and the adjoining annex building to create space for athletic practice fields and leased building space to the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff for the offering of high school and college credit courses in agriculture-related fields.

• Approved a 2018-19 school year calendar in which students would start classes on Aug. 13, have a weeklong break for Thanksgiving, take a Christmas/winter break from Dec. 24 through Jan. 7, and complete the school year on May 24.

Rodgers told the board that policy and budget drafts could be ready for review as soon as the board's regular monthly business meeting later this month. The next scheduled meeting is March 15.

School safety is a topic that is being discussed not only by the board and other school leaders but also by students, Rodgers said.

In a recent session between high school students and district leaders, students indicated that they want more of a police presence as well as the expanded use of metal detectors and weapons searches, Rodgers said, adding that the students are developing plans for a vigil on school safety to which all segments of the community would be invited to listen to student speakers.

North Little Rock High School Principal Scott Jennings said that, in the wake of the Florida high school massacre, the students want a greater sense of protection and feeling that school doors are being watched.

"It's not just the high school, all of our campuses want more," Rodgers said.

Sandy Williams, the district's safe-school coordinator, said the district recently acquired more walk-through metal detectors and hand-held metal-detecting wands to accommodate weapons searches at spring athletic events.

Williams and Micheal Stone, the district's director of student services, suggested a system of random searches in classrooms and on buses as a way to deter students from taking weapons to the campus.

Board member Dorothy Williams said she would be supportive of going beyond random searches to do daily scanning of students for weapons, just as it is done at the federal and county courthouses.

"Everywhere we go, even at the airports, it is everyday. Bring some prices to us and let the board decide how important it is," Dorothy Williams said.

"I would suggest you put additional people in there, too," board member Luke King said about the budgeting. "If you are going to start a program like this, which I'm in favor of, it's going to require logistical planning and it's going to require more people."

"They don't have a problem with more," School Board member Tracy Steele said about student views on safety measures. "They don't have a problem with more wands. They don't have a problem with walk-through detectors. They don't have a problem with [drug and weapon-detecting] dogs. They were absolutely all for it. They are really concerned. They are aware of what is going on.

"The part that is concerning to me is that they feel that what has happened in other places, including Florida, could happen, anywhere including our high school," he added. "We need to take that seriously."

Metro on 03/03/2018

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