District's force blasted: A Palm Beach County grand jury looking into school security issues a report blasting the school district's police department, calling it "understaffed, underfunded and underpaid" and saying it is misleading the public about how well it's protecting schools. “If the Palm Beach County School Board and the [school district] do not want to adequately fund, hire, pay and equip the [school district police], they are in effect wasting our taxpayer money and could be putting our children’s lives in danger,” the grand jury concluded. If the district isn't willing to spend the money necessary, the grand jury said, it should turn over the job to the sheriff's office. School officials call the grand jury's suggestion to fix the problems by using financial reserves or cutting other school programs “irresponsible.” Palm Beach Post. Sun-Sentinel.
School security: South Florida schools districts are scrambling to hire police officers to comply with the state mandate of having an armed officer in all schools when they reopen this fall. Sun-Sentinel. Sarasota County Sheriff Tom Knight and county commissioners criticize School Superintendent Todd Bowden for his handling of negotiations for school resource officers and for the district's decision to create its own police force. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. WFLA. WTSP. About 180 people have applied to become armed guardians for the Volusia County School District. Sheriff's officials say about 130 met the minimum requirements and will be interviewed. As many as 52 could be hired to guard elementary and charter schools. Daytona Beach News-Journal. Orlando Sentinel. Estero city officials say protecting schools should be the responsibility of the Lee County Sheriff's Office, not the city. WFTX. The St. Johns County School District and county agree to a deal to have the sheriff hire 16 youth resource deputies to help guard schools. The district will contribute $1.4 million and the county $1 million. St. Augustine Record. (more…)
School security: The Florida Department of Education and the Attorney General's Office are collaborating to build a suspicious activity reporting app for students and others that would allow them to anonymously report "unsafe, potentially harmful, dangerous, violent or criminal activities" to local law enforcement. The app, called Fortify FL, is scheduled to be launched before the beginning of the next school year. Tampa Bay Times. The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Safety Task Force wants "as many security enhancements in place before the start of the school year,” says member Max Schachter, whose son Alex died in the shootings Feb. 14 at the school. He says the task force is developing short-term and long-term solutions in perimeter security, cameras, doors, locks and glass, and predicts metal detectors will be in place at the school in the fall. Sun-Sentinel. Security needs are putting a strain on the Broward County School District budget, and 35 administrative positions are eliminated as the district tries to close a $13.6 million deficit. Sun-Sentinel. Bradford County deputies begin training 16 school employees who volunteered to carry guns at schools under the state's guardian program. WJXT. Sarasota County School Board chairwoman Bridget Ziegler wants to meet with local law enforcement officials to clarify their partnership as the district prepares to start its own police department. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Thirty-five people died in school shootings during the 2017-2018 school year. Education Week.
Portable classrooms coming: The 25 classrooms that are now closed because of the shootings at Stoneman Douglas High will be replaced by portables this summer, according to school officials. Superintendent Robert Runcie says most, if not all of the classrooms will be in place by Aug. 8, when teachers return to school. The school board approved a $2.5 million contract for the replacement portables and 17 others. The building where the shootings took place will be torn down after confessed shooter Nikolas Cruz's trial. Sun-Sentinel. (more…)
School safety proposals: Gov. Rick Scott and legislative leaders present their plans to bolster security in the state's schools. Both plans would boost the age for buying guns to 21. Scott's plan, which he estimates would cost $500 million, would also ban bump stocks, an accessory that converts semi-automatic rifles into automatic; allow authorities or relatives to take guns from mentally unstable people without first having them committed; require people who are committed under the Baker Act to surrender their guns for at least 60 days; provide more access to mental health counseling; put at least one armed guard at every public and charter school, including one for every 1,000 students; assign a Department of Children and Families case manager to law enforcement officials in all 67 counties; conduct active shooter drills in every school; and require state-approved school safety plans. The legislative plan also proposes a three-day waiting period for gun purchases, a program to train and arm teachers in the classroom, and a requirement that a person be Baker Acted before his or her weapons could be confiscated. Neither plan calls for a ban on assault weapons. Sun-Sentinel. Tampa Bay Times. News Service of Florida. Tallahassee Democrat. Politico Florida. Orlando Sentinel. Associated Press. Palm Beach Post. Florida Times-Union. Broward County School Superintendent Robert Runcie pleads with legislators to not put guns into the hands of teachers. Miami Herald.
Queries into shootings: Gov. Rick Scott is asking the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to investigate the response by Broward County authorities to the shootings at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland on Feb. 14. The Broward County Sheriff's Office is also investigating claims from another law enforcement agency that three other deputies waited outside the school during the shooting. Sheriff Scott Israel insists just one deputy was at the school during the shootings. Sun-Sentinel. Sun-Sentinel. Miami Herald. Associated Press. Palm Beach Post. Israel is rejecting a call to resign because of the problems in his department's response to the shootings. Dozens of Republican state representatives are urging Gov. Scott to replace Israel. Sun-Sentinel. Miami Herald. WPEC. CNN. Time. Officers are trained to “move to the sound of gunfire quickly and stop it” in school shooting scenarios, say law enforcement experts. Sun-Sentinel.
Students march: Survivors of the shootings at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland on Valentine's Day lead a march of thousands to the state Capitol, then meet with state lawmakers to call for a ban on assault-style weapons. They say the response from legislators was discouraging, but they vow to continue to fight. Sun-Sentinel. Associated Press. Miami Herald. Palm Beach Post. Politico Florida. Gatehouse Media. Tallahassee Democrat. News Service of Florida. The 74. More than 40 survivors of the Parkland, Columbine and Sandy Hook school shootings and parents plead with President Donald Trump to make students safe during a meeting Wednesday. "How many children have to get shot?" asked Andrew Pollack, whose daughter Meadow was killed in Parkland. Trump vowed to bolster background checks and mental health screenings, and supported the idea of allowing teachers and staff to carry guns at schools. Associated Press. New York Times. Education Week. Politico Florida. Why arming teachers is highly unlikely to happen. Politico Florida. Parkland students have raised $3.5 million to finance a national gun-control movement. Miami Herald. Sun-Sentinel. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio is jeered at a town hall meeting held by CNN. Sun-Sentinel. Palm Beach Post. High school students around Florida walk out of classes and take part in marches Wednesday as a show of support for Douglas High students. Sun-Sentinel. Sun-Sentinel. Miami Herald. Orlando Sentinel. Palm Beach Post. Gradebook. WFTV. Fort Myers News-Press. WFTX. WESH. Florida Today. TCPalm. Naples Daily News. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Key West Citizen. Associated Press.
Returning to Douglas: Broward County school officials detail the plan to reintroduce students to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Counselors and an added police presence will greet the students when they return Tuesday for a half-day of classes. Sunday, the school will hold a "voluntary campus orientation" with a variety of support services available. Miami Herald.
