BATH — Amid heightened concern about student safety, RSU 1 installed new security measures in advance of the start of this school year.
Those changes include new panic buttons, heavy duty glass and new locks, according to administrators.
“We installed panic buttons into all of our office areas,” said Superintendent Patrick Manuel. “They’re directly tied to local law enforcement.”
New glass has been installed which will make it harder for intruders to break into the building, and the district is currently in the process of putting numbers on the outside windows of all the rooms, which will help rescue personnel responding to emergencies.
The new locks, which will allow officials to lock doors quickly from the inside, were installed at all district schools except Morse High School.
“We didn’t go with a new lock system at Morse because in the fall of 2020 we’ll be in a new building,” said Manuel.
While security plans for the new high school are still being developed, administrators do know some of the features that will be awaiting high school students in the fall of 2020.
“We’re working with a consultant on the new Morse building as well as working with our local law enforcement,” Manuel said. “Our surveillance and cameras will be tied right into Bath PD, and we’ve talked about everything from landscaping from a safety standpoint to having one front entrance to having an even higher level glass in the building. It’s going to be top notch.”
The district has worked closely with its school resource officer and Bath police while designing the new building.
“There’s a good relationship between Bath PD and all the schools,” said Bath police Lt. Robert Savory. “It’s a small community and everybody knows each other, and we have a very good healthy working relationship.”
Manuel said the technology the district is considering for the new high school is advanced, to the point where administrators could get a text alert if a door opens at an unusual time.
According to Manuel, the changes weren’t a response to a specific incident or complaint, but were part of an ongoing discussion among administrators on how to best protect students. The district has allotted $50,000 to make the changes to the current buildings. Schools across the country have been beefing up security in recent years after a spate of school shootings.
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