LIBERTY — After the May 24 shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, Amite County School District Superintendent Don Cuevas said he wants to make sure security measures are increased.
Cuevas said at Thursday’s school board meeting that the Department of Homeland Security gave the district a positive report in January. However, he believes there is always room for improvement, he said.
Going forward, Cuevas said safety issues will be on the agenda of every board meeting.
“We just have to be better,” he said. “We have to keep increasing what we're doing. That means more security keeping those doors locked, making sure to keep the classroom doors locked, making sure we’re keeping the gates locked. We’re making sure everybody’s aware of what’s going on around them.”
Cuevas asked everyone to notify authorities if they see someone suspicious is on school property.
“From this building on down to all school principals in all schools, we have to be safety-minded,” he said. “Everything we do this year has to be safety-minded.”
Cuevas said if a door is not locked and should be, anyone who sees it should lock it and then report it.
“The main thing is we've just got to increase awareness of what we're doing and what we’re trying to do,” Cuevas said.
Cuevas said employees already have to use a badge to unlock a door and guests must tell their reason for coming before entering a building. He noted the measures were put in place shortly before he became superintendent in January 2020.
“We’ve gotten lax,” he said. “We have to be better. Even though we know somebody, we can’t let them in.”
Cuevas acknowledged taking more precautions does not guarantee a person who is dangerous will not enter a building, but it lowers the risk.
“You want to minimize that as best you can,” he said. “That’s by being aware, taking care of your surroundings and making sure we follow security protocol.”
