NK, CC schools ramp up security in aftermath of Connecticut tragedy

Last Friday’s horrific school shooting in Newtown, Conn. has spurred immediate action by sheriff’s offices and school personnel in New Kent and Charles City counties to heighten the level of security at local schools and raise the comfort level of students, faculty, and parents.

And the incident could provide impetus for finding budget money to install a School Resource Officer (SRO) in Charles City, where none exist now, and hire additional officers in New Kent. Currently, New Kent schools have two officers, one each at the middle and high schools, but none at the two elementary schools. Of chief concern to officials is Watkins Elementary, which is separated by seven miles from the other three schools located at New Kent Courthouse.

As news broke of the Connecticut shooting, extra deputies were dispatched to all four schools, said New Kent Sheriff F.W. “Wakie” Howard Jr. In Charles City, Capt. Jayson Crawley said standard operating procedure continued, requiring a deputy to perform a daily walk-through at all three schools.

“We have an officer at each school this morning [Monday], and we’ll have officers there every morning this week just to be visible for the kids and have an extra sense of security,” Crawley said.

Howard reported the same for New Kent.

“After we heard Friday, we had deputies drop in at all four schools while on patrol,” he said. “Extra officers are in all four schools now and will be there all this week.”
Schools in New Kent dismiss for holiday break on Friday (Dec. 21) while Charles City schools close Wednesday (Dec. 19).

“Parents will see a larger police presence at schools, but that means things are okay,” said Howard. “It doesn’t mean things have gone wrong. We hope to give faculty, kids, and parents a little bit better comfort level.”

As part of established procedure, schools in Charles City are locked down during the school day. A camera system monitors entrances, and visitors to each school must activate a buzzer system and be recognized before staff inside allows entry. There’s also an “instant alert” system to notify parents.

“That’s good security,” Crawley said. “But there are still other ways for someone who wants to get in to get in there and create havoc.”
Howard agreed with Crawley’s assessment.

“We must do what we can to harden the target,” Howard said. “It’s impossible to totally lock down a school. There are so many variables involved in trying to secure a large school complex. All you can do is make it the hardest target possible, but having an officer there is a deterrent.”

Howard said his personnel are being shuffled so that an officer can be assigned daily to Watkins Elementary due to the school’s distance from the sheriff’s office at New Kent Courthouse. He said officials plan to explore means for adding an SRO at each elementary school.

“That’s something we’re going to have to look at at budget time,” he added.

Crawley, meanwhile, said hiring an SRO in Charles City is also a budget matter, and budgets there are cut to the bare bones now.

“I hope we can work out something in this year’s budget, but I feel confident we can work with the county to find funds for this position,” he said, adding he plans to consult with Sheriff Javier Smith on ways to approach the matter.

Howard said his officers recently went through a training session on how to attack and neutralize an armed individual that has broken into a school or other public building. That “active shooter” training took place in an abandoned building on the Eastern State Hospital campus in Williamsburg.

“We did that two-and-a-half weeks ago, and we plan to redo that after the first of the year,” he said.

Howard said he “brainstormed” over the weekend with New Kent school superintendent Rick Richardson on what can be done to enhance security. Sheriff’s personnel plan to stay in close contact with the schools’ safety committee, he added.

“We’ll meet with the schools’ safety committee and go over the active shooter scenario and what we can do to better secure schools,” he said.

In Charles City, school superintendent Janet Crawley said she was on her way to a Monday morning meeting with school principals to go over security procedures. And she also weighed in on the SRO matter.

“We’ll probably work jointly with [the sheriff’s office] on that. Obviously, there’s a need,” she said.

“I know we certainly can’t find [SRO money] in our budget,” she said. “Hopefully, the Board of Supervisors will work with us to either find a grant or provide funding.”

In New Kent, signs posted at the main entrances to schools direct visitors to the main office for signing in and obtaining a pass. Others entrances have always been locked.

Effective immediately, Richardson said, main entrances are manned by staff members who are charged with issuing passes to known individuals and demanding identification from strangers.

“If it is an unknown person, staff will not hesitate to ask that person for ID,” he said. “We’re also asking parents not to walk their kids all the way to a classroom. They can pick up and drop off their kids in the front foyers.

“We’re in what we call ‘heightened security.’ It’s not lockdown,” he added. “The bottom line is our buildings are kept secure throughout the day.”

Richardson said the school system has a crisis plan, and crisis teams are in place at both elementary schools in the event students, faculty, and staff need counseling. School board administrators are on the scene during morning and evening bus runs, and there are “other procedures” in place, but he declined to elaborate.

“I don’t want to announce everything we’re doing to some nut case out there,” he said. “We’re trying to send a message that we’re doing everything in our ability while working in conjunction with the sheriff’s office to see that our buildings are safe and secure.”