A two-year audit reveals the San Diego Unified School District needs $200 million in safety upgrades, which include fencing improvements and communication fixes.
Though the district points out that students are staff are safe in local schools, revelations from the Sandy Hook tragedy two years ago prompted schools across the region to review their procedures and facilities to see where their weak spots lie and what they can do to make schools safer for kids.
The SDUSD school board heard the recommendations from safety and security review Tuesday, which identified improvements like fixing gates, replacing door locks and at one school, building a front window so staff can see who is approaching the school.
Additionally, the majority of district safety procedures have been found to be poorly enforced or outdated, like campus communications.
“One of the issues with the radio system before was that people had their own individual systems. They'd just go to Costco and buy radios. The problem was that the public could hear what the emergency communications were on the radios,” said Sally Smith with the superintendent’s Focus Group on Safety.
School board members also discussed how each action could be funded. District spokeswoman Urusla Kroemer told NBC 7 the $200 million price tag would wipe out all available bond money, and while some grant money could be used, it would not be enough.
She said some hard decisions have to be made, and officials have to weigh the recommendations against the concern of making schools feel like a prison.
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After discussing the issues, the board voted to create a team tasked with deciding which safety measures are needed at each school. That group will review school sites, undergo community outreach, reconcile the audit’s recommendations with what’s already been started and report back to the board.
Kroemer said the team will start meeting with various schools as early as next month.
NBC 7 has investigated several safety lapses at San Diego schools. At Crown Point Elementary, parents say two kindergartners were able to wander off campus. Some at Pacific Beach Middle School complained about gates being left wide open and unattended.
“Parents had the opportunity to bring up all of these issues, and parents know that their own schools have their own problems,” said Smith. “The great thing was parents had the opportunities to talk about the gates that were being left open or the radio system that wasn't working.”
NBC Investigates also revealed nearly half of the county’s school districts do not collect and review official school safety drill reports, though this issue is not included in the audit.
