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Trussville schools to add metal‑detection gates, emergency alert cards and other security upgrades
Summary
District administrators described several security upgrades including open‑gate metal‑detection units, ballistic/solar film, a Syntegix emergency alert system for staff, fencing and visitor‑management replacement; the student handbook will be amended and a water‑bottle policy change was discussed.
Trussville City Schools administrators outlined a series of safety upgrades for district buildings, including new walk‑through metal‑detection gates, building‑envelope film, a staff emergency‑alert card system and improvements to fencing and camera sightlines.
District staff said the new open‑gate metal detectors detect metal items as students pass through and that possession of metal travel cups (notably stainless steel “Yeti” bottles) had interfered with earlier demonstrations. The district plans to shift to a clear plastic water bottle policy in school buildings to reduce false positives.
Administrators said the district has completed ballistic and solar film installations at all facilities to strengthen windows and building envelopes. They are also deploying Syntegix, an emergency‑response platform that uses a staff card to alert administrators and first responders and provides location information inside a building. Officials said the system has been used elsewhere in the state and enabled quick first‑responder response in a Georgia incident.
Other measures under way include additional fencing and windscreen for outdoor areas, trimming and selective removal of trees that obscure camera views, and a replacement of the district’s visitor‑management system with a reunification and visitor‑management platform. District officials emphasized coordination with school resource officers to determine camera sightlines before tree work.
The board placed a proposed student handbook on the table for first reading; administrators said the handbook’s substantive change consolidates several harassment policies into a single harassment section of the student code of conduct. The handbook discussion included the proposed move away from metal insulated bottles to clear plastic bottles to work with the new detectors.
Administrators said the security upgrades are part of an ongoing, multi‑year program and will be phased as funding and procurement schedules allow.
