SOMERVILLE, Texas (KRHD) — The Somerville ISD Board of Trustees approved the purchase of six portable metal detectors to increase school safety.
- The board has discussed adding metal detectors to campuses since the summer.
- Superintendent Eric Holton said the metal detectors could help crack down on vaping and potential threats.
- The district still has to make a plan for potential campus use and train staff before using them inside schools.
- For now, the district wants to use the metal detectors at large events.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
As a grandparent, Alice Eubanks never stops worrying about her grandkids, especially at school.
"Actually, I do have one here in Somerville, and we, you know, it's scary with the kids now," she said.
But the district is hoping to give neighbors like Eubanks some peace of mind, investing $28,000 for six portable metal detectors.
"Well, how do we put a dollar on our child's life? You know, I mean, whatever it takes to protect them, that's what we have to do," Eubanks said.
Superintendent Eric Holton said it's been in discussion since the summer.
"We had some safety grant money that we could utilize to purchase those," Holton said.
He added that the detectors can crack down on vaping and even possible threats.
But there's still more work to do before heading inside campuses.
"We all have to be trained on how to use those devices, how to set them up, get the sensitivity levels just right," he said.
For now, the district wants to use them at larger events.
"I don't want our schools to feel like they're restrictive or not open, and that is certainly not what we're going to do with this. But I do want our parents, community, our students, our staff, to feel like we've done everything we possibly could to make sure they're safe every day that they're here," Holton said.
A precaution Eubanks believes is necessary.
"I think that we need to provide more protection for them as, you know, we're their lifeline, we have to help them," Eubanks said.
