School Security: A pragmatic, measured approach to provide safer campuses for all
- 3 days ago
- 8 min read
One of the first things to learn about school security best practices is that it requires a systems-based approach and layers of security measures. No one type of security measure will cover all the holes in your security net. Accounting for every eventuality feels daunting, overwhelming, and critically important.
Configure Your Approach:
CISA.GOV has recommendations to help you get started. A successful, manageable, budget-appropriate solution is possible when you start off on the right foot from the beginning. A problem this complex requires a strong, pragmatic approach grounded in logic rather than the all-too-common reactionary response. Reactionary measures are more costly, statistically less effective, and fail to account for the full scope of the project of safety. To this end, a 6-step process has been identified as an effective method to address the issue of school security.
Form a physical security planning team - Identify and Include relevant school staff, community organizations, law enforcement and families. A multidisciplinary approach is recommended
Gather relevent local data about safety incidents - Gather data about safety incidents and their consequences locally
Threat Analysis: Types of safety incidents you should be concerned about in your area and at your facility, as well as the likelihood of an occurrence of each
Vulnerability Analysis/Analysis of current safety measures
Risk Analysis - potential consequences of each of the identified safety incidents based on the security measures currently in place, how the current security measures reduce risk, what security gaps remain
Create a security plan to address the assessed risks and plan for layers of security measures to shore up vulnerabilities discovered in your preparatory steps. What are the most practical and effective measures to address the gaps you have identified?
These recommended steps draw a roadmap for a measured, practical approach to overall school safety and help avoid the costly and less effective practice of piecemealing singular security items in response to individual incidents in the news.
School Security Systemwide Questions:
When approaching this issue, there are several questions you need to ask to effectively proceed. A few are:
Do you need a system connected through a network so doors can be locked and released remotely?
Do all the doors need to be opened with a key, or can you shift to hardware that employs a keypad or proximity device such as a keycard or fob?
Does your current system allow for free egress for emergency exiting if the emergency requires evacuation?
Are your current doors and locks strong enough to withstand attempts at forced entry?
When you look at your current system against your list of potential security and safety events, where are the gaps in safety for students and staff?
Can doors be quickly secured from the inside without a key?
Is there a visual indicator on the interior of the doors to let the staff and students be sure the door is secured before moving to their established wait-in-place area within the classroom?
Does your system allow for quick access by first responders and authorized staff?
Is your current or proposed system compliant with current best practice standards, local codes, and ADA standards?
How does your current or proposed system affect the lockdown response time of your facility as a whole?
What are the human elements that create vulnerability points, and how will they be addressed? For a helpful list of common vulnerabilities created by people in secured environments, take a peek at our Commercial Security page.
Does the current or proposed system include layers so there is no single point of failure?
Are our various security measures integrated cohesively?
What training measures and continuing education should be put in place to educate and discourage complacency?
Are these safety measures appropriate for adults and the age range of children on your campus?
Will the installation of new hardware compromise the integrity of the door or frame?
Common Mistakes:
Barricades: Barricades are a tempting solution that is often marketed to schools, but are largely against code as they are a source of unintended consequences and often are not ADA compliant. They may help keep an active shooter out, but they also keep occupants in and prevent emergency services from accessing the room to administer aid. Additionally, they have been leveraged by assailants against the very people they were intended to protect. Proper locks are a safer alternative to barricades.
Harmfully Reactive: Knee-jerk reactions to high-profile tragedies are an understandable impulse. Security systems should be based on a thorough and practical risk assessment for your individual facility, not a reaction to a particular situation that occurred elsewhere. Approaching a security plan with the correct mindset will help ensure you create a system with the greatest real impact on prevention.
Inadequate Threat Assessment: It is important to assess the sources and nature of potential threats. Student age, school location, and common issues in your area all factor into the answer. Assess the scope, probability, and frequency of risk, as well as the potential impact of these incidents.
Closing The Gaps:
No system is perfect, nor is anyone executing the system. Finding and closing gaps in the security of your facility should be a thorough and ongoing process. Working with all your staff is an incredibly important tool for an effective security plan. Ensure the culture at your facility fosters collaborative relationships with and among your staff. Encourage staff and students to report gaps as they are noticed and mitigate these risk points appropriately. No one can anticipate or plan for every eventuality, but by engaging all types of staff and your students, you will broaden your knowledge base in ways that would not be possible otherwise.
Compliant Layers:
The importance of layered security cannot be overstated. With a wide array of potential threats and the inevitability of human error, layers of security can help catch and stop an incident by ensuring there is more than one hurdle to be surmounted for entry. The challenge is not only to prepare for multiple threat types, but also to achieve a high level of security while remaining compliant with fire codes and the ADA. While this makes appropriate measures a bit more difficult to navigate, it also seeks to ensure your safety measures don't have unintended negative consequences for your most vulnerable people. Rules like ensuring exit doors can latch with a single motion are important for fire safety and engagement of your security system, but the exit device used must be installed according to ADA requirements to ensure anyone with a physical disability can operate the device safely and easily.
All these factors can be successfully incorporated into your overall system plan to ensure that maximum security threats from within or without are addressed in a way that is safe for all involved.
Notes on Doors and Hardware:
In this section, we will address a few hardware options and considerations for a more micro view on practical security solutions.
Lock Functions: We have a whole article explaining the various options for lock functions here. Recommendations have changed over the years, and can vary based on the laws in your area, so we will address the pros and cons of each historically common lock function. Notably, the modern priorities typically include:
-The ability to quickly secure the door from the inside the room by anyone, without requiring a key.
-Must be up to code for fire, ADA and local safety codes
-Allow for quick access from the outside by authorized personnel and first responders
-Visual indicator showing whether the door is locked or unlocked easily understood by the relevent age group
Functions:
Classroom:
Pros: Teachers do not have to exit the room to lock the door with a key, which avoids exposure to danger in the hall. Both sides operate with a key. Students are not able to lock the door at inappropriate times.
Cons: This is not allowed in all areas. The door can't be locked without a key, preventing students from locking the door for safety reasons if staff with a key is not present.
Entrance/Office:
Pros: Entry from the hall requires a key. Anyone can lock the door from the inside via a thumb turn or push button. Extra keys do not need to be provided to substitutes as someone can let them in for the day and they will still be able to secure the door from the inside without a key.
Cons: Anyone can lock the door from the inside, including students at inappropriate times.
Storeroom:
Pros: Storeroom function locks remain locked at all times and must be opened with a key, ensuring unauthorized persons can't unlock the door.
Cons: The door is locked at all times which can be disruptive when someone is trying to enter the classroom while class is in session. In an emergency situation, students are potentially stuck out in the open as all the doors are locked by default.
Hardware:
Electronic Locks:
Electronic locks are an alternative that can address the problems with lock functions that may not meet your requirements.
Pros: If integrated, they enable the campus to be locked down from a central location very quickly. No keys are required, and they always allow for free egress. If students inappropriately lock the door, it can be easily unlocked with a code or proximity card/fob. Lost credentials can be easily revoked. If using fobs or cards, an audit trail is available when tracking is required. This is the safest option with the most flexibility.
Cons: Electronic locks are more expensive than conventional locks. They rely on staff responsibly maintaining key codes or proximity items.
Indicators:
Indicators are a great safety tool. Using words, pictures, and/or colors, the locked/unlocked status of the door is made clearly visible from inside the room. This enables the people sheltering within the room to clearly see the status of the door lock from a distance. There are locks that come with integrated indicators, but many locks can also be retrofit to include an indicator trim.
Doors/Frames:
The strongest locks in the world are only as effective as the door and frame they are securing. Be sure your door and frame are the appropriate strength, and that any hardware you intend to install does not compromise the integrity of the door and frame.
Budget vs Effectiveness:
Schools are historically underfunded. This nearly universal fact means a responsible, informed, pragmatic approach is absolutely critical. Choosing where to allocate those funds can be frustrating and worrying. When working through this issue, you will be well served by incorporating a key factor that is often overlooked: How will each measure show value? For example, security cameras are great when they are actively monitored in real time. If that is not a reasonable expectation of your staff, the only value that measure will have is in a later investigation. They are important to have for their value after an incident, but without constant monitoring, they are not a layer that will reliably prevent the incident. The layers of your system should directly impact the safety of your staff and students before or during an incident. A budget consideration may be not going all in on a large number of cameras, but perhaps fewer cameras focused on critical locations and redirecting the remaining funds toward your locks and lockdown software that have a greater impact on safety at all times.
Important Sources:
Below is a list of sources to assist with planning your school security system. It is important to stay up to date on local and national codes and current best practices. We hope this general overview has been a helpful tool for awareness of some of the critical factors in keeping everyone safe in your facilities.
