City, DCPS declares partnership with company specializing in safety doorways, glass

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Town of Jacksonville and Duval County college district on Wednesday announced a brand new plan to maintain children safe in the classroom.

The college district employed a New York company named Armoured One, which focuses on doorways and glass and claims it might probably slow down or forestall a shooter from getting right into a classroom.

Those are crucial factors after police in Texas determined the door accessed by the gunman at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde was closed however not locked. Originally, state police said a instructor left the door propped open. Investigators concluded the teacher actually closed the door, but it surely didn’t lock routinely like it was alleged to. The gunman shot and killed 19 students and two teachers earlier than he was killed by regulation enforcement.

Armoured One, which was based after the Sandy Hook Elementary Faculty taking pictures, is made up of former navy and legislation enforcement agents who study mass shooting assaults and consult on faculty security measures.

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“We are going to first work collaboratively to identify the place Armoured One assets can greatest praise the training already offered, including their resources to the coaching tools and assets the district already makes use of,” Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry mentioned Wednesday afternoon at a news conference at Metropolis Hall to announce the partnership.

Press the play button instantly beneath to look at all the news conference.

The safety glass and film that Armoured One invented can stand up to several hits -- whether or not that’s bullets, someone ramming into the glass or utilizing different objects or weapons -- with out breaking, which might slow an attacker. The doors it uses have steel framing, latch bolts and deadbolts.

Armoured One is also recognized for providing lively shooter training and assessments. The corporate points individual reports for each building and recommends the perfect gear to make use of for every facility it’s working with.

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Curry mentioned he plans to search out the funding for that training but in addition work with the company to carry out school security assessments. Armoured One CEO Tom Czyz said his crew is aware of what to search for when it assesses a faculty’s vulnerability.

“They’re methods to slow down an attacker and velocity up police response,” Czyz mentioned. “How will we sluggish him down -- after which pace up the response that might cease him.”

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

What I need to be frequent is that our households know that we're ready every day. And that’s what we work in the direction of being a greater school district because it pertains to safety and safety,” Green stated.

Burton stated, “I would say the one word that summarizes every thing that we do is vigilance.”

Greene mentioned that the district’s finest protection is its students and workers. She stated she continues to encourage the varsity group to report something they see that’s suspicious.

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So far as the price, it’s unclear right now, as the partnership is still being labored out.

Duval County voters accepted a half-cent gross sales tax in November 2020 with the particular goal of replacing getting old schools, repairing an enormous backlog of upkeep points, and bolstering faculty safety.

Proper now, 74 projects are in the design part and 15 are under construction.

As of January 2022, the tax has generated more than $118 million dollars, with greater than $5.7 million already spent or allocated to initiatives underneath building.

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

Extra information about how that money is deliberate to be spent in particular person schools might be found on the varsity district’s half-cent sales tax info dashboard.

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The next record of security measures is published on the varsity district’s web site:

Each faculty has a security plan and emergency response crew.

All school school rooms are locked when occupied by students.

College plans are reviewed with workers every semester.

The district has a highly skilled faculty police department, giving all colleges direct access to school useful resource officers.

The district makes use of numerous main safety monitoring strategies together with camera surveillance and monitored controlled access programs.

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

All colleges conduct common evacuation drills (fire drills).

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

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