NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — Newport News Public Schools will start the new school year with 45 new security officers throughout the district. It's a sign that safety remains a top priority for school leaders.
Still, school safety is a concern for many parents, like Sajada Lewis, who is reminiscent of the Jan. 6 shooting at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News. Police said a 6-year-old shot his teacher, Abby Zwerner.
"I'm all for extra security," said Sajada Lewis, a NNPS parent. "These are our babies, and we have to protect them."
Since that incident, many changes within the district are in full swing, including adding additional security officers.
"We want to protect our teachers and our children," said Lewis. "When we send them off to school every day we want to know they're safe."
The school board recently discussed the district's layered safety plan. They've hired three new supervisor security officers and added 45 new security officers.
That brings the total number of security officers to 115.
"That puts two in every elementary school, three in every middle school, and six in every high school," said Robert Stewart, the executive director of Crisis Planning, Prevention, and Environmental Risk Management.
NNPS also hired ten new substitute security officers—these measures are in addition to other changes in the district to enhance safety measures.
These changes are something teachers, like Dr. James Graves with the Newport News Education Association, have wanted to see for some time now.
"Going to school August the 28th, I am confident that the officers and the additional officers that we have will make a good presence for students who may try and do anything that is totally negative," said Dr. Graves said.
Dr. Graves, the teacher's union president, who is also a high school teacher said additional security officers are a good start in the right direction.
"With the other additional 10 security officers as subs, then we don't have to be concerned if a security officer is out because they're sick, then we're down by one security officer or so on," said Dr. Graves.
School leaders said security officers will undergo new training, with the goal of being more proactive and solving problems before bad things happen.
"As long as they're taking their job serious, they know why they're there, and they make sure that everything is good, I'm on board," said Lewis.
School starts in less than two weeks in Newport News.
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Other safety measures are in place like mandatory clear backpacks for all students and weapons detection systems for all Newport News school campuses.
