Superintendents in Texas are talking with each other about options to improve security after two shootings outside school buildings this week. Wednesday night, Dallas ISD announced the arrest of a suspect in a shooting outside Thomas Jefferson High School Tuesday afternoon; a 15-year-old has been charged with capital murder for killing a student outside Lamar High School in Arlington Monday.
Dallas ISD Superintendent Stephanie Elizalde says she spoke to Arlington Superintendent Marcelo Cavazos after the shooting there. She says she then got a call from the Garland superintendent after the shooting outside Thomas Jefferson High School Tuesday. A shooting at a restaurant near South Garland High School forced several schools into lockdown in September.
"We do visit together because we all want to support each other in this work," she says.
Elizalde says superintendents across Texas are talking about potential steps that can be taken to improve security around schools.
"All of this takes additional resources. I'm going to use this moment to remind everyone superintendents across the state are coming to the legislature asking they give us a minimum of $200 per student just for the purposes of safety in our schools and to allow us to have more mental health interventions early on," she says.
Elizalde says Thomas Jefferson High School will have additional police on site at least for the rest of the week. For the rest of the school year, she says neighboring Walnut Hill International Leadership Academy will have a dedicated officer.
Longterm, she says Dallas ISD may consider relocating student parking around the high school or may add a fence or gates around parking.
While Dallas ISD is increasing security around the two schools, Elizalde says the district must also keep providing a welcoming place for students to learn how to work together.
"We design our facilities with safety at the forefront, and we also design them to be learning spaces," she says. "Everything is always a balance between how much of our designs are ensuring that we also don't become fortresses of some sort."
Despite the shooting this week, Elizalde says she wants students to feel safe at school.
"We have to be authentic with our community, and at the same time, we have to recognize schools are still a very safe place because of all the work we have done," she says. "That is why I think it's incumbent upon me to also remind everyone of where these incidents have occurred. It's not just at schools. This is a manifestation of our entire community. We must really deal with the root issues."
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