School District of Lee County enhances security, but some say not enough

Amy Resnick said she feels comfortable sending her two grandchildren to high school.

“I think it’s pretty good,” Resnick, a grandparent, said about the improvements in safety. “I think they do a very good job, but you can never be too careful.”

Her two grandchildren are in the School District of Lee County. She appreciates the new, extra security guards when she comes to pick them up, such as measures that require her to show identification and getting buzzed in.

“If you have to pull them out early they make you jump through hoops,” Resnick said. “That makes me very comfortable.”

But now, the group investigating and discussing the best practices following the shooting at Majory Stoneman Douglas High School said schools can do even more.

Releasing its draft report on safety and security recommendations yesterday, it said schools should consider metal detectors to bullet proof windows.

“An improvement like that would cost a lot of money, but that would also be reactionary,” Rob Spicker said, who works at the School District of Lee County. “And we also want to get a lot of focus on the prevention so that we can stop it from happening rather than it happening.”

The school district told WINK News that it is already doing some of the commission’s other recommendations, like putting up fences around the buildings and installing doors that can lock from the inside.

Next week, the school district will begin training its mental health assessment team, which one grandparent thinks is most imperative.

“I’d rather see the money go to mental health resources to try to head all the kids that may need real assistance,” Clyde Stearns said, a grandparent.

But grandparents agree, more could always be done to protect their loved ones at school who seek to obtain an education.

“You can always do better,” Amy Resnick said. “You can never do too much if you’re talking about the safety of children.”