Security Matters

On Wednesday, November 2, we ended the school day at noon and spent part of the afternoon in department meetings and the other hour-and-a-half as a full faculty and staff in Scott Theater. The purpose of our time together was to hear from Brian Harpole of Resource Group Unlimited, the group that, in October, completed our third and most recent security and safety audit. 

The information from the audit included guidance on how best to utilize our two Fort Worth Police Department off-duty officers. The feedback spoke to needing to be more specific about our “reunification” points near campus in the event of evacuating by foot. It also gave us the impetus to work with faculty and staff on using the AUXS Safety App, which we continue to use for campus safety measures.   

The time we spent hearing from Harpole (as one who had been observing our campus) was most notable for its demonstrations: first, how to use “Stop the Bleed” patches that are in our hallway safety kits, and second, what gunfire sounds like in a room and behind a closed door. 

Our next steps (likely during the faculty and staff January in-service time) will include more site-specific input for faculty and staff on the best approaches to threats in and near their classrooms.  

While pleased at our progress, we never get to say we are done improving our safety and security efforts. The work and the thinking continue.