News and Information

Central Texas Schools Adding Security
Aug 10, 2006 08:06 AM, KXAN, Austin

Keeping criminals off school campuses is the top priority for many districts with classes starting next week.

Some in Central Texas, including the Round Rock ISD, are installing a security system that runs visitor names through national sex offender databases.

Lake Travis ISD is another district installing this system. Round Rock High School is part of about a dozen schools in this district that will have it when school starts next week.

All their campuses should have it by the end of the school year.

With two kids going to Old Town Elementary, Deborah Henderson talks about the trust she puts in the school.

"That's my whole world, those two kids, and you want to know that they're safe while you're away from them," Henderson said.

There's now an extra safety layer at Old Town Elementary and other Round Rock schools. Any parent or visitor will have to present a photo ID that gets scanned in the front office.

"It's comparing my name, birth date and photo with that of databases of registered sex offenders from Texas and 47 other states," Safe Schools Program Supervisor Willa Rosen said.

If there's no match, then a badge with a name and picture is printed, and the visitor moves on.

If a parent's name is matched in the database, then the principal or a staff member will escort that person to the specific place they need to go in the school.

If it's not a parent or guardian whose name appears, they get taken off campus.

"And at that point, the police would get involved, and if they're not supposed to be anywhere near our campus or around children, whatever they need to do, it's a police matter at that time," Old Town Elementary Principal Sharon Wilkes said.

"You never know who may be in the wrong place. So it's nice to have checks and balances," Henderson said.

Last year in a KXAN undercover security story, a person just roamed Old Town Elementary for 12 minutes before being stopped. The principal says the new visitor system is part of the vigilance the front office will keep on people coming in.

"As well as our staff are making sure those who are on our campus have badges and have the required information necessary to be in the building," Wilkes said.

Other Central Texas districts like Marble Falls and Eanes have been running similar visitor management systems.

Eanes ISD told us that last year there was a subcontract worker who showed up in the database, and they called up the company to send another worker to complete the job.