Hartland-Lakeside plan meeting to discuss school safety

 Village of Hartland – The Hartland-Lakeside School Board announced they will have a special meeting on Jan. 28 to discuss possible safety improvements to the district’s schools.

District Administrators have met with Hartland Police to look at potential improvements to the school’s security, including possibly adding new shatterproof windows, cameras, or a new buzzer system for main entrances.

Hartland-Lakeside is just one of several districts looking at possible safety improvements following the death of 27 students and faculty at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.

“Safety has always been a priority at schools, ever since we ducked under desks during the Atom Bomb Era,” Superintendent Glenn Schilling said during the Jan. 21 board meeting.

But all security upgrades will have to eventually be accounted for in the budget, Schilling said.

“You can spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to secure your building and still not be safe,” he added.

The special meeting will be an opportunity for parents, faculty, staff and board members to come together to discuss what security measures should be added and how much the district is willing to spend.

Schilling said it might be possible to pull money from other programs to invest in security, but that is ultimately a decision for the board.

The school is currently emphasizing student and staff situational awareness and how to respond in the face of a crisis.