As school districts across the state assess their security protocols following the Feb. 13 mass shooting at Michigan State University, SEC President Jason Russell urges them to complete site assessments to identify their strengths and weaknesses before making any significant investments in safety and security tools and resources.
He says the best approach to creating a school safety plan is similar to when someone is feeling sick: You go to the doctor first to get diagnosed before you go to the pharmacy for medicine.
“What we’re doing too often with school security is skipping the doctor and going right to the pharmacy,” Jason recently told the Lansing State Journal.
He also said one of the most common gaps he and the SEC team finds in school safety assessments isn’t in the physical security tools, such as locks and camera systems, it’s in school safety policy and procedures. For example: Installing cameras rather than hiring another school counselor or purchasing metal detectors instead of beefing up mental health support.
One of the most prominent shortcomings is in mental health support and resources for students, Jason said.
“We want to prevent kids from going down that path toward violence,” he said.
When it comes to physical security components such as locks, most schools SEC works with have functioning door locks on classrooms, but the simplicity of how they function varies from school to school.
“The best-case scenario is something very simple that doesn’t need a key,” Jason said when asked about the importance of classroom door locks. For example: Simple deadbolt locks that can be quickly engaged with indicators that make it easy for a teacher to look across a classroom to confirm whether the door is locked.
“Really, you need a good lock on your door,” he said.
A layered approach to school safety and security is the most effective, Jason said. This includes physical security, mental health resources, effective plans and procedures, relationships with law enforcement and a number of others.
“When there’s an incident, people want to see change overnight. But it really takes time to see what you’re doing is appropriate and not a knee-jerk reaction,” he said.
“No one solution is going to fix this.”
Read the full subscriber-exclusive Lansing State Journal article here.