Several mid-Missouri schools hope to make security improvements with bond money
More than a month after the deadly shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida, school safety is still at the top of mind.
Several mid-Missouri school districts are hoping to make improvements to their security features if voters approve bond issues in the April 3 election.
Columbia Public Schools said about $750,000 from the $30 million bond issue would go toward security enhancements such as more cameras, protective glass window sheeting and more access control systems for building doors.
School of the Osage is also looking to make improvements to security if voters approve a $23 million bond issue. Superintendent Brent Depee said some of that money would go toward better securing Osage Upper Elementary School.
“Our front entrance does not meet our standards,” Depee said. “With a double-gated system to where people have to buzz in and of course pass in front of personnel.”
Depee said the district also plans to reconfigure student pickup and drop-off to allow for a quicker process and to get cars and buses off the nearby highway.
Other school districts that have outlined improvements to safety and security include Harrisburg R-VIII, Fayette R-III, Southern Boone and Dixon R-1.
According to the ballot language, Dixon R-1 would use part of a $2.8 million bond to complete safety improvements at the elementary and middle schools, which would include moving both main offices to a secure location.
