Montgomery County officials brief council on school security upgrades, data and pilot programs

Montgomery County leaders and Montgomery County Public Schools officials on Oct. 24 told a joint County Council committee they are pursuing multiple, layered safety measures — from access-control upgrades and cameras to new badges, vape detectors and an emergency alert system — while urging care in comparing year‑to‑year incident numbers.

"Safety is the top priority for Montgomery County Public Schools in today's environment," said Marcus Jones, the district's chief of security and compliance, in opening remarks outlining a holistic approach that pairs physical infrastructure with behavioral and mental-health supports.

The briefing, led by MCPS staff and county public-safety partners, emphasized that the county and school system recently changed the police-reporting format to the federally required National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS), making direct comparisons to prior years unreliable. Staff reported about 6,800 calls for police service to schools in the most recent 12‑month span and roughly 2,698 calls that fall under the MOU-defined "school service" category.

"We wanted to be able to capture how often police services are needed at a school," county staff said, describing the CEO (Community Engagement Officer) memorandum of understanding that delineates which infractions require police, which fall to MCPS, and where discretion applies. The MOU also supports CEO assignments by school cluster; MCPS lists 32 authorized CEO positions with one vacancy.

Officials discussed specific incident counts and caveats. MCPS staff said police reports included approximately 1,071 written reports during the reporting period and that simple assault was the most common written offense (about 345 incidents). MCPS separately classified roughly 130–135 fights as "serious" in its discipline database; staff noted many recorded incidents happen off campus or involve nonstudents and urged benchmarking against exposure and pre‑incident interventions rather than raw enrollment.

"Arrests and referrals are not random and should not be benchmarked just against the student population," county staff said, noting that better activity‑based benchmarks would improve analysis of disparities and policy effects.

The briefing reviewed several near‑term and pilot efforts:

- Cameras and access control: Jones said a state grant is funding camera upgrades in middle schools and that MCPS is prioritizing ACS card readers and door sensors at elementary and other schools where infrastructure gaps remain. He said installations in middle schools should be substantially complete by mid‑November to early December.

- Crisis‑alert system: Jones and staff said they are researching systems that would deliver near‑real‑time notifications to staff, parents and surrounding neighborhoods while minimizing classroom disruption; technical issues such as school Wi‑Fi reliability are part of the vendor evaluation.

- ID badges: MCPS began a full student‑ID rollout in November at some high schools and plans broader implementation. Alicia Deeny, principal of Richard Montgomery High School, said consistent staffing at entry points and clear expectations were key to success during her school's pilot.

- Vape detectors: MCPS piloted three vape‑detection products in school bathrooms; Principal Deeny said one higher‑cost product performed best (fewer false positives, capability to notify staff and link to nearby cameras). The County Council approved a $2 million supplemental appropriation and MCPS aims to finalize procurement within weeks and install detectors in high schools, with a planned middle‑school rollout by the end of the school year.

Councilmembers pressed staff on definition alignment between police call logs and MCPS incident records, racial disproportionality in arrests and referrals, and staffing and training for school security personnel. MCPS officials said the incident reporting platform (Synergy) captures everything from minor classroom issues to events triggering external response, and that roughly 22,000 incidents were reported systemwide last year with about 4,400 categorized as serious (those requiring external intervention or higher‑level support).

Shauna K. Jornby, director of student engagement and behavioral health, described restorative practices, expanded school‑based mental‑health staffing and partnerships (including Tree of Hope and the Bridge to Wellness initiative) aimed at reducing repeat incidents; she said about 79 percent of students who receive restorative interventions do not repeat the behavior tracked in the system.

Committee members repeatedly flagged middle schools as a disproportionate source of calls for service (staff cited about 40 percent of service calls originating at middle schools), calling for more social workers, restorative specialists and security coverage at that level.

Council members also asked about weapon detection pilots. Chief Jones said the district will tour other jurisdictions that use weapon detectors and will evaluate staffing implications and operational flow before any pilot recommendation.

Several council members urged clearer, faster communications to families during emergencies so parents have timely, accurate information without adding to classroom disruption. Jones said the crisis‑alert work aims to automate some of that notification and relieve principals of the extra operational load during evacuations or shelter‑in‑place incidents.

The committee did not take formal legislative action at the hearing; staff agreed to follow up with additional data comparisons, a CEO‑program assessment and details about the vape‑detector procurement and ID standardization timeline. The chairs closed the session and requested continued updates as pilots, procurement and training plans develop.