City, DCPS announces partnership with company specializing in security doors, glass

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The city of Jacksonville and Duval County school district on Wednesday introduced a brand new plan to maintain youngsters secure in the classroom.

The varsity district hired a New York company named Armoured One, which makes a speciality of doors and glass and claims it might probably slow down or prevent a shooter from getting into a classroom.

Those are crucial factors after police in Texas decided the door accessed by the gunman at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde was closed but not locked. Initially, state police stated a instructor left the door propped open. Investigators concluded the teacher truly closed the door, however it didn’t lock robotically prefer it was alleged to. The gunman shot and killed 19 students and two lecturers earlier than he was killed by law enforcement.

Armoured One, which was based after the Sandy Hook Elementary College shooting, is made up of former navy and legislation enforcement brokers who research mass shooting attacks and consult on college safety measures.

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“We will first work collaboratively to establish where Armoured One sources can best compliment the coaching already supplied, adding their sources to the training tools and sources the district already makes use of,” Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry said Wednesday afternoon at a information convention at City Hall to announce the partnership.

Press the play button directly beneath to observe the whole information convention.

The security glass and movie that Armoured One invented can withstand a number of hits -- whether that’s bullets, someone ramming into the glass or utilizing different objects or weapons -- without breaking, which might slow an attacker. The doorways it uses have metal framing, latch bolts and deadbolts.

Armoured One can be known for offering energetic shooter coaching and assessments. The company issues particular person experiences for every building and recommends the most effective tools to use for each facility it’s working with.

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Curry stated he plans to seek out the funding for that coaching but additionally work with the company to carry out faculty security assessments. Armoured One CEO Tom Czyz stated his team is aware of what to look for when it assesses a faculty’s vulnerability.

“They’re looking at methods to slow down an attacker and velocity up police response,” Czyz stated. “How will we sluggish him down -- after which speed up the response that would cease him.”

Duval County Public Colleges Superintendent Dr. Diana Greene and Duval County College Police Department Chief Greg Burton say safety and security are top of mind on daily basis.

What I need to be widespread is that our households know that we are ready every day. And that’s what we work towards being a better school district as it pertains to safety and safety,” Inexperienced said.

Burton mentioned, “I'd say the one phrase that summarizes every little thing that we do is vigilance.”

Greene stated that the district’s best defense is its college students and employees. She stated she continues to encourage the college community to report anything they see that’s suspicious.

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As far as the cost, it’s unclear proper now, as the partnership is still being worked out.

Duval County voters accredited a half-cent sales tax in November 2020 with the particular goal of changing getting older schools, repairing a large backlog of upkeep points, and bolstering college security.

Right now, 74 projects are within the design part and 15 are below construction.

As of January 2022, the tax has generated more than $118 million dollars, with more than $5.7 million already spent or allocated to tasks under construction.

Over its 15-year life, the gross sales tax is projected to generate $64.9 million for the particular purpose of upgrading college security in DCPS colleges.

More details about how that cash is deliberate to be spent in individual schools may be discovered on the college district’s half-cent sales tax data dashboard.

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The following list of safety measures is printed on the varsity district’s web site:

Each faculty has a security plan and emergency response staff.

All faculty classrooms are locked when occupied by students.

School plans are reviewed with workers each semester.

The district has a extremely trained college police division, giving all colleges direct entry to high school useful resource officers.

The district utilizes various major security monitoring strategies together with camera surveillance and monitored managed access methods.

All colleges and district places of work have a District Emergency Communications Community radio with direct entry to highschool police and district management. Faculty Police have direct entry to JSO.

All colleges conduct regular evacuation drills (fireplace drills).

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

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