Efforts to Keep Students Safe Continues in Franklin Co. Schools

Efforts to keep Franklin County school children safe while in the classroom continue and improvements are always being made.

Scott Andrews is the Safety and Security Director for the Franklin County School System.

At last week’s Board of Education meeting, Andrews outlined some of the ongoing security improvements they’ve made over the summer.

One of those improvements is a new phone app for students and teachers that will allow them to alert security and administration anonymously about a possible threat.

Andrews said the app is called Anonymous Alerts, which he said is better than the current tip system they’re using.

“We have a system now but it’s a one-way anonymous email and there’s no way to go back and say, ‘what school?’ or ask any other questions. With this new app it will be like texting back and forth and you can carry on a conversation with the anonymous person who sends a tip in,” he said.

Andrews said the new app will also have useful information and features for teachers, principals, and administration staff.

“For our teachers, they’ll have all their emergency operation plan will be on the app and they can log into it and they’ll be able to review that,” Andrews explained. “A lot of group stuff can be done with it so principals can communicate with 7th or 8th grade or any grade level,” he said.

Andrews said they hope to launch the new app later this month.

Once launched, there will be posters put up in school hallways with a QR code for students to scan so they can download the app.

Additionally, Andrews noted one area that is not as secure as it could be are the windows at all of the schools.

He told the Board of Education he has now found a product b 3M that will protect children in the classroom from gunfire through windows.

“So probably next week we will start putting an 8mm 3M film with a Dupont border on all our entry point windows as well as some other areas around the school. What it will do is it will shatter but it won’t fall out. They showed a video where a guy shooting at it and it took him about six times to get a hole in it. We know that the more time we can buy the better off we’ll be,” Andrews said.

Finally, Andrews told the Board that he has been concerned for some time about how to secure some of the exterior doors at the high school that largely remain unlocked.

He said he recently found exterior door locks with automatic timers and those will be put on the exterior doors the students at the high school use to access the gym and the ag building.

“I’ve been wondering what we’re going to do about this for about three years but as soon as the parts come in, those doors on the gym side of the high school will be on a 30-second timer. About 30 seconds before a class change they unlock. Kids go to the gym, come back, and about 30 seconds after the late bell, they lock. Any student left out there will have to get in through the main office door,” he explained.

Also, protective pads will be put at the end of the gym at Carnesville Elementary school.