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Board hears update on weapons-detection pilot as parents warn of lines and lost instructional time
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Summary
Superintendent Hendrick updated the board on a weapons-detection pilot at Palm Harbor University and Gibbs High Schools; parents at public comment said screening lines are causing students to skip devices and wait outside, and raised concerns about confiscations and emergency safety.
Superintendent Hendrick told the Pinellas County School Board on April 14 that the district began a weapons-detection pilot on April 6 at Palm Harbor University and Gibbs High Schools and that staff have already learned lessons about logistics and rollout. He said the school-based pilot will end April 17 before spring testing and that the district safety team will run additional pilots at district events, with a formal update slated for the May workshop.
The superintendent described early operational adjustments and thanked students, staff and families for their engagement. He said the district will share lessons learned and next steps at a May workshop and in subsequent notifications.
During public comment, Nicole St. Leger, who identified herself as a parent of students at Gibbs, said the machines have functioned as a deterrent but raised several practical concerns: "The weapon detectors have worked as a deterrent... Students are choosing to not bring their school issued computers because getting them through the line and screening is such a hassle," she said, arguing that some students now leave devices at home and that long lines keep students outside school gates. St. Leger also said she had not heard of weapons found but that items being confiscated included vaping paraphernalia and scissors common to school supply lists, and asked whether such items would be returned.
The public commenter warned the district to consider the safety tradeoffs of many students being outside gates during a hypothetical outside attack and urged the board to weigh the pilot’s impact on instructional time. The transcript shows board members and staff have visited pilot sites and training to observe operations and resolve logistics.
What happens next: The district will end the school-based pilots on April 17, run additional pilots at district events, and present a detailed update at the May workshop where the board and public can review operational findings and policy options.
