In wake of shooting, are metal detectors the answer for every Cleveland school? Safety expert advises, “You have to ask yourself: ‘Are the strategies taken really appropriate?’” by Joy Brewington CLEVELAND - On Oct. 10, Asa Coon, a 14-year-old student who had been suspended, went on a shooting rampaged at Success Tech, injuring two students and two teachers, before taking his own life. A week later, the Cleveland School Board approved spending $7.6 million to equip each of the district’s 111 schools with metal detectors and security staff. Although the vote was unanimous, some members expressed concerns that the district is going overboard with security equipment.
Catalyst Data Analyst Joy Brewington tracked down Ronald D. Stephens, executive director of the National School Safety Center, to discuss the district’s plans. Stephens also serves as executive editor of a violence prevention newsletter called the School Safety News Service. He has testified before Congressional committees on school crime and youth violence prevention. He is a former teacher, assistant superintendent, school board member, chief school business officer and a former vice president of Pepperdine University in Malibu, CA.

Metal detectors
“Monitors, metal detectors . . . they deal with the system and not with the problem,” cautions Stephens. At each school, “it’s important to identify a compelling reason for using metal detectors.” For example, “a background of weapons and knives that have shown up on campus, showing we’ve got a weapons problem here.”
Working with the community to find a balance for what a safe campus looks like is key. “You want something that is tangible and measurable. And you have to ask yourself, ‘Are the strategies taken really appropriate?’”
“Even with the best of measures you can’t prevent all crime; it can still take place. You have to look at what is reasonable and appropriate and what is not,” he says. Even if “metal detectors [are] at every entry place that kids can get in [the school], a kid can jump a fence and get in through the window.”

Security staffing and searches
It’s important to have academy-trained police or security officers when using metal detectors, Stephens recommends. Metal detectors suggest that a good part of the school day will be spent on searches, he points out. “You also have to look at the contextual climate. If a school teacher or school staff member spends the first part of the day looking through a student’s personal belongings or frisking a student, that student is not going to be real excited about seeing that teacher in class.
“You want to make sure searches are not overly intrusive. Body searches and searching through book bags can be risky” with both females and males, Stephens says. “Make sure searches are done consistently and fairly, [without] singling out a specific group.”

Essential protocols
Stephens stands by the “physical presence of a responsible adult,” as the single most effective school security measure. In addition, schools need a visitor screening and processing system in which someone is physically present to help sign in all visitors. They should ask where they are going. What is the nature of their business? And they should observe the visitor’s mental or emotional state.
Review school safety policies and procedures with staff and student. Be sure there is a threat-assessment protocol for when someone reports an apparent threat. Review procedures for expulsions or suspensions with students and parents. Help them understand what is expected of them and the consequences for showing back up on campus. “It is critical that schools clearly communicate behavior expectations to students and also to parents,” Stephens emphasizes.
Information should be shared between all involved agencies (schools, courts, social workers, counselors, and teachers). Stephens notes the “myth,” that “you can’t share info about a juvenile.”

Helping parents get involved
A metal detector without support for parents misses the point. Helping parents build healthy relationships with the schools is critical, especially in low- income neighborhoods, says Stephens. Parent education centers in some urban districts are proving successful, providing parents with guidance, volunteer handbooks, and the chance to work with family-support agencies, as well as build relationships with school personnel and other community organizations.

After-school programs
After-school programs can provide child supervision by a responsible adult during peak hours in which children get into trouble, Stephen says. “Court reporting tells us that most infractions occur between two and six in the afternoon. These are your best crime-prevention dollars because if a child is involved in the program during that time he is not the guy at the table.”