Lubbock Officials Say Your Kids Are Safe At School
By: Meredith Hillgartner
Updated: December 17, 2012
"We don't want our students to be fearful," Lubbock Superintendent Karen Garza said. "Because in most cases there is no reason for them to be."
After last weeks tragedy in Connecticut, schools around the nation are taking a second look at their own safety policies-including those in Lubbock.
"We are currently updating our safety and security plan," Garza said. "because now we have new resources available to us that we did not have last year."
Garza said 20-10 bond money is making it possible to put new safety measures into the schools.
"Since the bond we've put in camera systems," Garza said. "Up to date, new camera systems in all of our schools and they work very very well. [They are] Inside, outside, in places that we need to monitor."
Garza said the security system was not supposed to go into place until January but in light of last weeks tragedy they moved it to this week.
Now she said the only way visitors can get into a school is by using the front door by the main office.
"Because we went ahead and accelerated that process we're working with principals to make sure all doors are secured," Garza said. "In fact we've asked for them to put in a system to check to the doors three times a day, to make sure no one propped them open."
Garza said because they implemented the plan ahead of schedule, they might need to work through a few kinks.
"We are recognizing that it's not going to be 100% or fool proof," Garza said. "And well run into some hitches here or there, but we just felt like it was something we thought our parents would appreciate that we have it let's turn it on."
