As of Tuesday, July 25, the security officer on duty at the Hall County School District's Central Office will be armed.
School board members unanimously adopted a new policy at their meeting Monday night that permits Andy Betancourt to carry a weapon at the property on Green Street in Gainesville, as well as at any other property or building owned by the Hall County School District.
He'll be the only employee allowed to do so, according to the new policy.
"What we approved tonight was a policy that allows us at this time to allow only one individual within the District, other than certified local law enforcement officers, to carry a weapon," said Superintendent Will Schofield.
He said Betancourt, a 30-year law enforcement veteran with the Miami Police Department, has been employed as the District's safety and security assistant since the first of the year.
Schofield said the move is purely proactive - that there have been no threats made to anyone at Central Office.
"It is 100% proactive, but you look at the world around us - which has changed dramatically - and we believe one of the best things we can do is be proactive and make sure that people understand that we will are not soft targets," Schofield said.
The policy was proposed at a June 26 meeting and sat on the table for a month before the vote.
Under conditions of the policy, the superintendent has the authority to remove or suspend the authority of the person who is assigned the responsibility of carrying a weapon.
School Resource Officers (SROs) are employees of the Hall County Sheriff's Office, and as such, are armed while they are on duty at District schools.
