Fear in Schools: Safety, Security, and Broward County Public Schools

Clear backpacks and metal detectors to be discussed at upcoming school board meeting

By Attiyya Atkins and Kristen Hernandez

Pompano Beach, Fl – The last months of the school year have been a trying time for students, parents, and teachers. Aside from the regular duties of finalizing assignments, prom, graduation, and other end-of-the-year events, schools in Pompano Beach have had their share of violent threats.

In April, a bomb threat at Pompano Beach Middle School. In May, both a school shooting threat and bomb threat at Blanche Ely high school.

While none of the threats were founded, most students, faculty, and parents feared that their public school could be the site of another mass shooting. School board member and former Blanche Ely student Torey Alston wants to help eliminate that fear and plans to do more to keep staff and students safe within Broward County Public Schools.

“In the past year alone, I have seen 500 weapons enter our schools, including several in the Pompano Beach community,” Alston said. “This is absolutely concerning to me, which is why I am open to a series of solutions to turn this around so Broward can be the safest school district in the country.”

The Broward County School Board will host a town hall meeting on Monday, June 12, focused on school safety, ahead of its regularly scheduled school board meeting on June 13 to approve the use of clear backpacks. The June 12 meeting will be held at Plantation High School, 6901 NW 16 Street, Plantation 33313 at 6 p.m.

Beginning at the start of the 2023/2024 school year, public schools in Pompano Beach and across the county will require students to carry clear backpacks and bags. This new rule will apply to all students from Pre-K through 12th grade.

“Providing safe learning environments that are conducive to student learning is of the highest importance, not just for Broward County Public Schools but for school districts across the nation,” BCPS Interim Superintendent Earlean C. Smiley said in a statement. “This added layer of security is a game-changer. It will allow school security personnel and everyone on campus to quickly spot and report if someone has brought a prohibited item to school, and it will also help serve as a deterrent.”

The school district is cracking down on any possible means a person could use as a hideaway for weapons. Lunch boxes, purses, duffel bags, fanny packs and any other type of bag must also be transparent. Mesh and colored backpacks are not allowed, even if they are transparent.

There are few exceptions to this strict rule:

· A small non-transparent pouch for personal hygiene items

· Thermal food containers carried inside a clear lunch box

· School-approved sport specific carry cases for athletic equipment

· School-approved instrument-specific carry cases for band equipment

Jennifer Walker, doctor’s assistant and parent of two teenagers attending Dillard High School, reacted to news of the rule. “I should be focused on patient care but instead, I’m constantly checking my phone to see if my babies are okay. Every day, there’s some kind of brawl outside school grounds and this clear backpack thing might help a little, but school officials do nothing to protect kids right outside the school gates. A young girl was recently run over several times by someone right in front of the school.”

Walker is considering taking her daughter out of public school due to safety concerns.

Alston assures residents that Broward County Schools are safe overall, but more can be done.

“As a parent, I understand how other parents feel when they get that alert that there has been a bomb threat, or a weapon found on campus. I understand what it feels like in those moments when you don’t know what’s going on, when you don’t hear from the administration and/or your child. I want to make sure that when parents drop off their kids to our public schools, they can be assured that they are in the safest environments possible and those are the kinds of solutions that I will support,” Alston said.