Superintendent Scott Dill said safety stays on his mind as the leader of the Houston R-1 School District. But the events of Friday’s shooting in Connecticut have pushed the issue to the front of his priorities.
Dill said he was “grieve-stricken and dumbfounded” as the details of the tragedy inside Sandy Hook Elementary emerged. A gunman forced his way into the Newtown, Conn., school and killed 26 people, including 20 young students, before taking his own life.
“As a teacher and administrator, this hits right to the heart of who I am,” Dill said. “These are conversations we have all the time. But they’ve been given fresh importance because of the events on Friday.”
Dill said he began communicating with local law enforcement officers immediately after he learned of the shooting. He spent parts of the weekend speaking with educators and parents from across the state regarding school safety. On Monday, Dill visited with principals and teachers about potential weaknesses in each specific building within the district.
The biggest issue, according to Dill, is funding. He said school officials have identified improvements –– including replacing doors, relocating rooms and other safety measures –– that need to be addressed immediately.
Dill said many of the needs could be met with a ballot issue. He said that decision will ultimately be made by the school board.
“We have so many needs right now that it’s difficult to allocate funding without stretching the district too thin financially,” Dill said. “But one way or another, we will be addressing these things. I think security is at the forefront of everyone’s minds. I think it would be very prudent and the best move of the school district to address these issues sooner rather than later.”
Even before the Sandy Hook shootings, Dill said Houston Schools has taken steps to deal with a potential intruder.
Two years ago, a safety door was installed inside the elementary school. Visitors must be allowed into the building through a controller inside the office. In late November, the district held an intruder drill. Dill said teachers were provided an open forum to share what was effective and what wasn’t with the planned response to an attack.
“We came away from it with a list of things to address. That’s the point of the drills. We learn from them every single time,” Dill said. “We plan for these events, and we have procedures in place. God help us, we don’t want to ever have to deal with that.”
The district’s biggest flaw, Dill said, is the open campus layout. Students travel from building to building throughout the day. He said the district’s long-term goal is to secure building and facilities that require as little outside transit as possible.
“We do our best to always have eyes on kids,” Dill said. “I reemphasized that with the building principals –– to make sure we’re always supervising and aware of what’s going on.”
One of Dill’s priorities is again considering a school resource officer for the district. The idea was discussed in the fall of 2011 when Dill was the middle school principal. But he said as he transitioned to superintendent and changes were made throughout the district, the conversation dissolved as other immediate needs were addressed.
“That was at the top of my wish list as a principal and as superintendent, I can assure you it’s still there. It’s something we will progress on,” Dill said. “It’s not a turn-key solution. But it’s not a bad idea for a district our size. We’re large enough that I think we could make use of an officer.”
Dill, whose wife, Amy, is the elementary principal and who has two daughters in the district, said many safety changes are part of a long-term plan for improving the district. The immediate focus, he said, will continue to be providing the best possible education for students.
“My job is that of an educator. I’m a teacher at heart,” he said. “While this a politically charged issue, from the perspective of the school district, we just want to ensure that we have safe educational opportunities for the community’s children. That’s our primary goal. We will lean heavily on our local law enforcement and trust that our legislators at both the state and federal levels will give us the tools and resources to do so.”
We plan for these events, and we have procedures in place. God help us, we don’t want to ever have to deal with that.”