WEBVTT Kind: captions Language: en 00:00:04.160 --> 00:00:07.360 Hello everyone. I want to take just a  few moments to share with you some of the   00:00:07.360 --> 00:00:13.600 recent work of our safety and security group.  This summer our staff has been extremely busy   00:00:13.600 --> 00:00:17.920 implementing projects across the  district related to safety and security.   00:00:17.920 --> 00:00:22.640 I'm going to share some of those with you today  but please understand that this work happens   00:00:22.640 --> 00:00:29.040 all day, every single day and it takes all of us.  There are a few factors that go into implementing   00:00:29.040 --> 00:00:33.760 these projects that I want to cover. One of  those being timing. Some of these projects were   00:00:33.760 --> 00:00:39.520 already in motion prior to the Texas Education  Agency implementing their mandate earlier this   00:00:39.520 --> 00:00:43.840 summer. Others had to be adjusted within our  schedule to move them up in our timeline.   00:00:44.640 --> 00:00:48.640 The second factor is funding, how we're  going to pay for these improvements.   00:00:48.640 --> 00:00:54.640 We continue to utilize bond funds, specifically  2019 bond funds, to help us in a couple of ways.   00:00:54.640 --> 00:01:01.200 It allows us to save operational dollars  to pay for staff salaries and secondly it   00:01:01.200 --> 00:01:07.360 helps us in timing, that we are not relying  on funding from TEA or any other agencies.   00:01:08.480 --> 00:01:15.280 Specifically the 2019 bond included approximately  8 million dollars in funds allocated to safety and   00:01:15.280 --> 00:01:20.560 security projects including perimeter  fencing, additional security cameras,   00:01:20.560 --> 00:01:26.960 access control system upgrades, fire alarm systems  but also the construction of a secured vestibule   00:01:27.680 --> 00:01:32.000 at the Chap Court entry at Westlake High  School and with the completion of this   00:01:32.000 --> 00:01:37.680 project we now have secured vestibules at  each one of our campuses across the district.   00:01:39.040 --> 00:01:42.640 Now this summer there is a  concentrated effort on a few   00:01:43.200 --> 00:01:50.000 improvements including expanding our perimeter  fencing, additional security cameras, the   00:01:50.000 --> 00:01:55.840 installation of safety and security film at all  of our main entry points on our campuses but also   00:01:55.840 --> 00:02:02.800 the installation of exterior door prop alarms. To  put this into perspective, for evacuation reasons   00:02:02.800 --> 00:02:08.240 our facilities have multiple exterior doors for  example at Westlake High School there are over 60   00:02:08.240 --> 00:02:13.200 exterior doors, so the installation of exterior  door prop alarm allows us to ensure that those   00:02:13.200 --> 00:02:18.160 doors are shut securing our campuses. So those  installations of the door prop alarms has   00:02:18.160 --> 00:02:23.680 begun and will continue over the school year  until we have all of our campuses completed.   00:02:26.720 --> 00:02:32.960 So after a determined amount of time that the  door is left propped open an alarm will sound   00:02:33.760 --> 00:02:38.640 and will draw attention to anyone in the  area to address that door and unprop it. 00:02:42.960 --> 00:02:50.160 The third factor is staffing. As I mentioned a lot  of staff are required to implement these measures.   00:02:51.440 --> 00:02:55.840 So beyond the two School Resource Officers that  we have that reside at Westlake High School,   00:02:56.480 --> 00:03:01.280 we have a total of seven staff members  dedicated to safety and security   00:03:01.280 --> 00:03:05.440 but next year is going to be look a little bit  different for a couple of those members. First,   00:03:05.440 --> 00:03:10.560 Brent Kelly or better known as BK, our director  of safety and security will spend the majority   00:03:10.560 --> 00:03:17.120 of his day residing at Hill Country Middle  School. This gives Hill Country direct access   00:03:17.120 --> 00:03:23.360 to his skills but also it expands that access to  the neighboring elementary schools including Cedar   00:03:23.360 --> 00:03:28.720 Creek, Forest Trail and Valley View elementary.  Now on the west side of the district Matt Greer,   00:03:28.720 --> 00:03:33.280 our director of safety and risk management,  will spend the majority of his time officing   00:03:33.280 --> 00:03:38.880 out of West Ridge Middle School and just like  Brent you'll have direct efficient access to   00:03:38.880 --> 00:03:45.840 Barton Creek, Bridge Point and Eanes elementaries.  Both Brent and Matt bring a wealth of knowledge   00:03:46.400 --> 00:03:53.360 as retired law enforcement and together they will  support the school resource officers at Westlake   00:03:53.360 --> 00:04:00.560 high school and also all of our campuses when  needed. And with all this said we understand that   00:04:00.560 --> 00:04:07.040 creating a safe environment is more than secured  facility. We constantly strive to create a sense   00:04:07.040 --> 00:04:12.480 of belonging by building relationships and  community we will continue our previous work   00:04:12.480 --> 00:04:18.400 but will also be expanding our efforts around  mental health and the well-being of our staff   00:04:18.400 --> 00:04:24.000 and our students. We have counselors and  trained staff always working in providing   00:04:24.000 --> 00:04:29.360 guidance and resources to our students but  also our families and they will always be   00:04:29.360 --> 00:04:36.080 available to our students for any crisis. Now  as this summer ends and a new school year begins   00:04:36.080 --> 00:04:40.720 we're going to continue our efforts with our staff  and training them involving them in discussions   00:04:40.720 --> 00:04:46.160 around safety and security and drills so that  they are prepared so we're all prepared in case   00:04:46.160 --> 00:04:52.000 of an emergency whether it be a fire a weather  event also a critical incident that may happen   00:04:52.000 --> 00:04:58.880 on our campuses. Our staff have been entrusted  with the care and safety of our community's   00:04:58.880 --> 00:05:04.160 most treasured possessions our children. We  take this responsibility very seriously and will   00:05:04.160 --> 00:05:20.800 continue to use best practices and common sense  to make sure our campuses are as safe as possible.