Even before last week’s shooting at Apalachee High school in Winder, Ga., which left four dead, school safety officials in the Augusta area have been planning and working to keep local students safe.
“It’s something that our employees think about daily,” said board member Judy Teasley at the Columbia County School District board meeting on Tuesday night.
Now, conversations with campus police and safety experts are contributing to a developing snapshot of the current security landscape in Augusta schools.
Richmond County School System
Richmond County School System (RCSS) representatives said that school shooting protocols are kept private for students’ safety, but noted that the plans in place for the school system are guided by policies from Homeland Security.
“School resource officers are assigned to all of our schools, and we have personnel that specifically handle crisis and emergency situations,” said RCSS representative Haley Lacuesta, communications coordinator for the district.
Schools within the district hold active shooter drills three times a year.
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On the day of the gun violence incident at Apalachee High, Richmond County School System’s Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Bradshaw sent out a message to students and parents in which he wrote: “We understand that some of our students may feel anxiety or distress as they hear this news. If you or someone you know needs support during this difficult time, please contact your school’s counselor’s office.”
Richmond County was among those that worked in 2022 to improve safety at athletic events after shots were fired at football games at Laney Walker and a T.W. Josey. Two people were injured in the Josey incident, and two vehicles were damaged in the Laney incident. At the time, system officials declined to describe the new measures, for safety concerns.
“We have several security measures – anytime you identify an area that needs to be beefed up, then we work on it. However, sharing the security measures we are putting in place is not always the best practice as those things need to remain confidential due to people being able to try circumvent them,” Mantrell Wilson said at the time. Wilson is director of School Safety and Security.
Columbia County responded by increasing patrols and ensuring at least five officers at each athletic event.
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Columbia County School District
According to a statement by the Columbia County School District, “Safety of students and staff is a top priority.”
Columbia County equips each school with school resource officers and a parking lot monitor.
“The SROs and district training officer, work closely with school and district administration year round to ensure proper planning and implementation of school safety plans, including staff training as well as routine, planned and unplanned emergency response and preparedness drills,” the district’s statement reads.
This year, the CCSD Police Department received state certification by successfully completing the Georgia Association Chiefs of Police (GACP) Georgia Law Enforcement Certification Program.
“The CCSDPD joins the ranks of only 140 top law enforcement agencies, out of 700 law enforcement agencies across the state, of which 41 are school police, to successfully demonstrate best practices for effective and professional law enforcement. Out of the 180 school districts across the state, the CCSDPD is now one of only five to earn certification,” said the statement.
Suspicious activity noticed by parents or students can be reported to CCSD administrators, CCSD Police or by contacting the anonymous tip hotline at 706-541-3600.
Columbia County sees a rise in threats
According to a Sept. 12 news release by the Columbia County School District, there has been a rise in “threats, poor behavior and social media posts” that have caused disruption to classrooms and have raised concerns from parents and community since the Apalachee shooting.
This release states that approximately 17 letters have been sent by the CCSD to parents at several schools over the past five days regarding threats or investigations concerning rumors or social media posts.
This has resulted in approximately eight students who have been criminally charged and suspended.
“In these letters, we are continuing to identify a variety of ways in which parents can assist us in addressing behavior such as consequences students face for threats,” the release states.
This release also included information about a quarterly informational forum for students and parents called Let’s Talk, which the district hosts throughout the year. The next talk will be on Sept. 19 at 5:30 pm at Grovetown High School. This event is free and open to the public.
Augusta University on emergency phones, prevention
Members of the Augusta University’s Critical Event Preparedness and Response team (CEPAR) said that they are working to enhance campus safety by implementing new ways to encourage students to use the emergency phones that are located on both campuses.
These phones are being rebranded this month to make their purpose clearer to students. “We found that a lot of students are hesitant to use those [phones] because they don’t feel like what they want to ask is an emergency,” said Jim Lyon, police chief for the AU Police Department.
These phones will now be labeled for basic help or assistance, as well as for emergency use, to keep students from shying away. The university is also expanding the number of phones that are available on the grounds. Lyon said encouraging phone use will be “another way of engaging our university community.”
Students can also call the AU Police Department’s phone number, which is 706-721-2911.
Lyon noted that a large number of students who are planning a violent attack leak information to other people, either in person or on social media, and he encourages students, staff and faculty to make reports in such situations.
“Seeing something and saying something, or in this case, hearing something and saying something, is really important,” he said.
John Ryan, CEPAR Emergency Manager and AU, mentioned the Texas State University Don’t Name Them campaign, saying that de-sensationalizing the identity of gun violence perpetrators could also help cut down on incidents. He said infamy is the motivation for some shooters.
“Some of [the shootings] are done for notoriety. If we can eliminate that reward, then that percentage of events will stop taking place,” said Ryan.
CEPAR Director Joe Webber thinks inclusion of others is another way to prevent campus violence.
“I believe that if, you know, as a society, as human beings, if we take the time to just say hello to someone, if we can treat each other with respect and with dignity…then we can reduce the likelihood and the occurrence of what we’re experiencing as a nation right now,” he said.
Aiken County Public School District
The Aiken County Public School District (ACPSD) is integrating a new Standard Response Protocol (SRP) into its safety plan starting this school year.
The SRP was created by the “I Love U Guys” Foundation, which develops programs for crisis response. The Foundation, formed in 2006 by Ellen and John-Michael Keyes, followed a school shooting that resulted in the death of their daughter, Emily.
Emily sent two text messages to each of her parents the day of the shooting, saying “I love you guys.”
The SRP aims to bolster school safety with straightforward action plans in the event of various emergencies.
“By adopting this protocol, we aim to streamline our emergency response procedures and empower our school community with the knowledge and tools necessary to respond effectively in times of crisis,” said the ACPSD in a news release on their website.
The protocol includes a set of five terms (Hold, Secure, Lockdown, Evacuate, and Shelter) that coordinate with simply defined action plans. Visual reminders highlighting these terms are posted throughout ACPSD schools.
At an Aug. 23, 2022 ACPSD school board meeting, board members approved the use of $1.1 million from the fund balance to purchase 62 OPENGATE Weapons Detection units.
At this meeting, Superintendent Corey Murphy, who was at the time serving as the district’s chief officer of operations, said the units are not stationary and could be routinely moved from place to place, at varying school entryways or for pop-up safety checks.
“My primary goal…is not to detect bad things but to deter them from ever coming to our schools,” said Murphy at this meeting.
Do you know the signs of gun violence?
On Dec. 14, 2012, 20 students and six adult leaders at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut were killed at the hands of a gunman. Since then, the nonprofit organization Sandy Hook Promise has advocated for the empowerment of students and their families, educating them on the signs of gun violence.
The organization provides a list of common gestures and signals that could indicate a potential shooter. These include bullying, social withdrawal or isolation, excessive irritability and cruelty to animals.
SHP also created a short film titled Evan in 2016 to highlight the importance of paying attention to these signs.
