Metropolis, DCPS pronounces partnership with firm specializing in security doors, glass

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The town of Jacksonville and Duval County school district on Wednesday introduced a brand new plan to keep children protected in the classroom.

The college district employed a New York company named Armoured One, which focuses on doors and glass and claims it could actually decelerate or stop a shooter from getting into a classroom.

Those are essential components after police in Texas decided the door accessed by the gunman at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde was closed however not locked. Originally, state police stated a instructor left the door propped open. Investigators concluded the teacher truly closed the door, however it didn’t lock routinely prefer it was imagined to. The gunman shot and killed 19 students and two academics before he was killed by law enforcement.

Armoured One, which was founded after the Sandy Hook Elementary College taking pictures, is made up of former navy and law enforcement brokers who examine mass shooting attacks and consult on faculty security measures.

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“We'll first work collaboratively to identify the place Armoured One sources can best praise the training already supplied, adding their assets to the training instruments and sources the district already uses,” Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry said Wednesday afternoon at a information conference at Metropolis Corridor to announce the partnership.

Press the play button instantly beneath to observe the entire news conference.

The safety glass and movie that Armoured One invented can stand up to a number of hits -- whether or not that’s bullets, someone ramming into the glass or using different objects or weapons -- with out breaking, which might sluggish an attacker. The doors it uses have steel framing, latch bolts and deadbolts.

Armoured One can also be known for offering energetic shooter coaching and assessments. The company issues individual reports for each building and recommends one of the best gear to use for each facility it’s working with.

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Curry stated he plans to find the funding for that training but in addition work with the corporate to carry out faculty safety assessments. Armoured One CEO Tom Czyz mentioned his group knows what to look for when it assesses a faculty’s vulnerability.

“They’re methods to decelerate an attacker and speed up police response,” Czyz mentioned. “How will we sluggish him down -- and then pace up the response that would stop him.”

Duval County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Diana Greene and Duval County School Police Department Chief Greg Burton say security and safety are top of mind day-after-day.

What I want to be common is that our families know that we're prepared every day. And that’s what we work in the direction of being a better faculty district because it pertains to security and safety,” Green stated.

Burton mentioned, “I might say the one phrase that summarizes all the things that we do is vigilance.”

Greene mentioned that the district’s greatest protection is its students and employees. She mentioned she continues to encourage the varsity neighborhood to report something they see that’s suspicious.

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So far as the cost, it’s unclear right now, because the partnership remains to be being worked out.

Duval County voters authorized a half-cent gross sales tax in November 2020 with the specific goal of replacing ageing schools, repairing a large backlog of upkeep issues, and bolstering college security.

Right now, 74 initiatives are within the design part and 15 are underneath development.

As of January 2022, the tax has generated more than $118 million dollars, with greater than $5.7 million already spent or allotted to initiatives below construction.

Over its 15-year life, the sales tax is projected to generate $64.9 million for the precise function of upgrading college security in DCPS faculties.

More details about how that cash is planned to be spent in individual faculties will be found on the varsity district’s half-cent gross sales tax info dashboard.

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The next record of safety measures is revealed on the varsity district’s web site:

Every school has a security plan and emergency response staff.

All college classrooms are locked when occupied by college students.

School plans are reviewed with workers every semester.

The district has a extremely skilled school police division, giving all schools direct entry to school resource officers.

The district makes use of various major safety monitoring strategies including camera surveillance and monitored managed entry techniques.

All faculties and district workplaces have a District Emergency Communications Community radio with direct entry to high school police and district management. College Police have direct entry to JSO.

All faculties conduct regular evacuation drills (fireplace drills).

All faculties conduct regular emergency and lockdown (“code pink” and “code yellow”) drills.

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