Chief Brian Holmes, the district’s chief of school police and the school safety specialist, told the Orange County School Board on Oct. 28 that Orange County Public Schools has met or exceeded the requirements of the state’s recent school‑safety legislation and recommended a set of ongoing security upgrades.

Holmes delivered the board’s annual school safety specialist update, citing the district’s work to implement changes in Senate Bill 1470 and the Florida Department of Education rules. “Keeping our students and staff safe is our top priority,” Holmes said as he opened his presentation and reviewed new statutory requirements.

Holmes summarized key statutory changes: the law now distinguishes exclusive zones (areas between an outer barrier and an interior locked door) from non‑exclusive zones (exterior campus areas such as athletic fields and parking lots), narrows campus‑access timing to 30 minutes before school through 30 minutes after dismissal, requires that substitute teachers receive district safety procedures before they work, and requires county sheriffs to authorize individual school guardians to work in the county. Holmes said OCPS has met or exceeded those requirements.

Why it matters: The new definitions change how the district treats gates, doors and exemptions and reduce the number of written exemptions the safety specialist must create. The change also shortens the period that some campus‑access controls must be actively enforced, easing operational burden while keeping staff and students protected.

What Holmes recommended: Holmes outlined several operational and capital priorities, based on school safety assessments the district conducts at each site:

- Expand exterior and interior security cameras to reduce blind spots and improve first‑responder situational awareness. Holmes said cameras remained a frequent entry on schools’ threat assessment forms (SSRA).

- Continue a phased rollout of card readers to control authorized movement during the school day; the district is piloting card readers at selected campuses.

- Improve intercom systems and other communication technology to support campus‑wide coordination during emergencies; Holmes said a technology rollout is planned and initial tests will begin with facilities staff and district police.

- Pursue design and facility changes to improve law‑enforcement access to classrooms and safer‑area signage placement; the district placed signage in more than 15,000 classrooms and alternative instructional areas over the summer, Holmes said.

- Pilot a single‑school screening operation to test throughput and operational impacts before any wider deployment, and expand safety‑screening capabilities, including the addition of a second detection canine trained to locate weapons. “We picked her up today,” Holmes said, noting the dog was still being vetted and socialized before public demonstrations.

Funding and limits: Holmes flagged that available state grants for school hardening and SRO reimbursements have been relatively small compared with district needs. He referenced a school hardening grant amount in the low millions that he called “a drop in the bucket” relative to the full scope of required investments.

Board questions and staff responses: Board members asked about the pilot screening operation’s logistics and the new Florida Safety and Threat Management portal (STMP), which collects safety data across districts. Member Gallo pressed on how the portal will record disciplinary information for students who were expelled and later enrolled in homeschooling, virtual schooling or private schools; Holmes and Dr. Maria Vasquez, the superintendent, said district practice includes re‑entry meetings and transition plans when students return to district schools, and the district would likely address formal procedures through the student code of conduct and the policy process.

On the subject of cameras and equipment reliability, trustees pressed for timelines to repair or replace cameras that fail; Holmes said the district’s SSRA feedback shows camera and intercom gaps remain a priority and recommended continued investment and procurement planning to address those needs.

On metal detectors and screening equipment, several board members said they favor stronger screening, especially at some high schools. Holmes described the district’s intention to run a single‑school pilot to evaluate throughput and operational feasibility before recommending broader deployment.

What was not decided: The board did not adopt new districtwide screening rules at the meeting. Holmes’ recommendations were presented for board awareness and for staff to return with implementation details, pilots and budget proposals.

Context: Holmes repeatedly emphasized that school‑level threat assessment data and best practices from other districts inform recommendations. He also stressed statutory limitations on public disclosures of detailed security protocols, citing the need to keep tactical methods confidential to avoid undermining protections.

Ending note: Holmes said the district will continue quarterly testing of emergency alerts and compliance inspections, and that school safety work will remain a recurring agenda item. “We intend to honor the memory of the tragedy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School by never letting up on the accelerator here,” he said.