FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — Parents and community members met with Fulton County Schools officials, Tuesday night, to discuss what the district is doing, and could do in the future, to keep students safe in the wake of mass shootings.
The group met at 6:30 p.m. inside the Banneker High School gymnasium for the discussion with Superintendent Jeff Rose. There, Rose and other safety experts outlined safety protocols and other security measures already in place across the district, like practicing regular drills.
They also described what new technologic investments are being made in safety, one of those being a mass emergency system that allows two-way communication.
After the meeting portion, parents and other safety officials there brainstormed solutions for keeping students safe while on campus; some suggested monitoring social media accounts to investing in more mental health care. But two suggestions that 11Alive's viewers brought up –metal detectors at every school and teachers carrying guns – seem less likely to be picked as new realistic policy measures.
"If we're going to start school at 3 o'clock in the morning to have a normal instructional day and end it 24 hours later, that could be an option," said Dr. Shannon Flounnory with Fulton County Schools.
Right now, Fulton County Schools employs the largest police force in the state for a school district, with 68 officers. The district is also one of the few in the country that has an active SWAT branch.
A second meeting is scheduled for March 8 at Centennial High School.
