The Hall County School Board recently approved an additional $1 million for use on security improvements in the district's schools.
The approval of the funding came after a series of recent learning opportunities for faculty and staff focused on the safety of students.
According to a press release from Hall County Schools, district personnel recently attended state and national best practices seminars, participated in tabletop scenario conversations with local and state emergency management teams, and conducted active shooter/intruder drills.
The district said it believed school security was a 70/30 proposition, with 70% being affective (school culture, trauma/mental health support, staff training and support) and 30% being infrastructure and equipment (SROs, security guards, cameras, doors and perimeter planning and placement of safety personnel and weapons).
The district said it was spending $3 to $4 million per year on mental health training for all staff and teachers, additional mental health personnel, support for students and team members and emotional skills training for students. The district has also funded additional security personnel, surveillance equipment and other hardware and equipment.
The recently approved $1 million will be used to increase the support for struggling students, expand planning with local and state agencies, place additional personnel and/or defense weapons, assess campus preparedness and provide additional hardware support.
"We know too much about previous school tragedies to believe that armed personnel, metal detectors, and razor wire are a sufficient and appropriate response," the release reads. "Our students have been through much chaos in recent years and are experiencing record levels of anxiety; our schools should be a haven of safety and welcome. We will do all that is within our abilities to ensure the safest school environments while allowing our boys and girls to be children in a culture that provides peace and enhances learning."
