This Just In ...
Kevin Fischer is a veteran broadcaster, the recipient of over 150 major journalism awards from the Milwaukee Press Club, the Wisconsin Associated Press, the Northwest Broadcast News Association, the Wisconsin Bar Association, and others. He has been seen and heard on Milwaukee TV and radio stations for over three decades. A longtime aide to state Senate Republicans in the Wisconsin Legislature, Kevin can be seen offering his views on the news on the public affairs program, "InterCHANGE," on Milwaukee Public Television Channel 10, and heard filling in on Newstalk 1130 WISN. He lives with his wife, Jennifer, and their lovely baby daughter, Kyla Audrey, in Franklin.
Are Franklin schools as safe as they should be?
Why do I raise the question? It first came to mind actually last fall when an article on GreenfieldNOW caught my attention.
The Greenfield Police Department offered to conduct a safety analysis of Glenwood Elementary School following concerns raised by area residents. GreenfieldNOW’s Stefanie Scott wrote last October:
“The board asked for an analysis of the building and outlying property, where incidents of vandalism — as well as middle- and high-school age students loitering on the playground, smoking and drinking in the woods, and even climbing onto the roof with skateboards — have been reported.”
Complaints focused on activity after school hours and on weekends, but Greenfield Alderman Linda Lubotsky, who is also on the Greenfield School Board, worried about safety during school time, especially given that Glenwood Elementary kept a door near the school office open all day. The view of the door from the office is obstructed.
Despite some pooh-poohing by Greenfield school officials, Lubotsky persisted and the school board did approve a safety analysis by the police.
The results? Mark Schaaf wrote in GreenfieldNOW last December:
“It is pretty easy for someone to enter and walk around in Glenwood Elementary School, something Greenfield school officials should address in the coming months. That was one of the conclusions from the Greenfield Police Department’s security analysis of Glenwood School, presented to the Greenfield School Board on Dec. 15 by Greenfield police Deputy Inspector Brad Wentlandt. He was struck by the ease in which he was able to walk into the school and move around the building, he said. He entered unannounced, went upstairs and into classrooms and hallways before going back downstairs. The easy accessibility could make the building too attractive to ne’er-do-wells, he said. ‘You don’t want to make it so easy for someone to come in that it becomes an easy target,’ he said.”
The door that was once unlocked at Glenwood Elementary is now locked and visitors must ring a doorbell to gain entry. However, this rudimentary, simple, common sense measure took numerous complaints from neighbors, pressure from a local alderman/school board member, approval from the school board, and an analysis from the police department before it could be put in place.
Following the October GreenfieldNOW article, I did receive some e-mails about Franklin schools from some Franklin parents. Here are some excerpts:
1) “Yes, they keep the main doors open to watch the people coming and going to make sure everyone checks in with the office to get a pass. Some schools aren't designed to have a great view of the main doors so that is a problem.”
2) “Oh Kevin, this is SUCH a hot topic with me. Some doors are locked but not all. The front door is not locked at Southwood Glen. I have raised issues with this on more than one occasion. The principal at Southwood Glen wants to maintain an ‘open’ atmosphere for the parents and students. She doesn’t think it would ‘feel good’ to have the school totally locked up all day.
Visitors are supposed to sign in at the office when they come into the school but it really is on the honor system. The secretary does not have a direct view towards the door and cannot monitor comings and goings. It would be SO easy for a predator/perpetrator to walk right in, hide in the bathroom or the library or into a classroom and do the unthinkable.”
I would have to agree. The obstructed view problem at Greenfield’s Glenwood Elementary seems to be an issue in some Franklin schools. And the suggestion that something bad just couldn’t happen here, in Franklin, is quite foolish.
But don’t take my word for it. Remember what the Greenfield Police Department discovered. Think the Franklin police might come up with the same conclusion if it performed a similar safety analysis?
And so I ask, are Franklin schools as safe as they could/should be? Sadly, I’d have to say no.
0 COMMENTS