Berea City School District residents, Brook Park City Council address school safety

Residents addressed the Berea Board of Education about school safety during its Feb. 26 meeting.

BEREA, Ohio -- Residents in the Berea City School District addressed the topic of school safety at the Feb. 26 Board of Education meeting, while Brook Park City Council will continue discussing a resolution to urge greater security at school buildings.

Council President Mike Vecchio introduced legislation at caucus Feb. 27 that encourages the district to install additional security devices.

"This council and the mayor recognize the safety of our children, educators and staff while at school is of the utmost importance," the resolution reads. "Added security devices, enforcement of additional security measures and communication with students will help to protect our most vital assets."

Vecchio explained that after speaking with other cities' leaders, he believes the resolution can be strengthened even more.

"I think this is a great start with what's going on throughout all of society and throughout our environment," he said, subsequently placing the legislation in Safety Committee for further discussion.

District residents expressed to the school board their safety concerns about the new high school currently being designed.

"I think it is very critical that that new building be secured," said Jeff Dettmer, while Julie Armagno talked about the school's interior.

"Open concept learning is about big, huge, wide hallways," Armagno said. "None of that seems very safe to me. I don't care about couches ... or about 40 feet of hallway space. I care more about the ability for my kids to be safe and for the building to provide that."

Carolyn Matese said a preliminary plan to exclude lockers from the building "just opens the opportunity for kids to carry more (items in their backpacks)."

Gina Conner submitted a sample resolution to Board President Ana Chapman that Conner explained "asks the state of Ohio to step up its game in protecting our students, faculty and staff."

Both the resolution and the possible elimination of lockers are still under school board consideration.

"The safety of our kids comes first," said Superintendent Mike Sheppard, noting that administrators meet regularly with local law enforcement.

"As part of our construction projects and renovations that we're doing right now, security is a significant part of that conversation. We do take everything very seriously when it comes to our kids. It's our first priority," Sheppard said.

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