MEMPHIS, Tenn.– With mass shootings and active shooter incidents on the rise, the Memphis-Shelby County School Board approved $5.5 million in safety and security technology upgrades during Tuesday’s board meeting.
District documents say the multi-million dollar investment will go towards several security measures including upgrading cameras, card access, and alarm systems.
According to board reports, the current system is described as “unreliable and ineffective.”
The district said when it comes to the safety of students and staff there is no price tag.
We hope that most of the upgrades will be seamless for our students and staff; however, some of our schools that are returning from state-control back to Memphis-Shelby County Schools may notice additional security measures to align them with other schools in the District.
We are thankful for the support of the members of the Shelby County School Board. They have always worked with the District to prioritize student safety, and we are grateful for their advocacy on behalf of our students.
Memphis-Shelby County Schools
Althea Green, Vice-Chair of the MSCS school board, wouldn’t go into detail about the new safety measures but said it’s a must that all schools districtwide have the same technology.
“We want this community, we want our parents we want the educators who work for our district, we want our students to know their safety is priceless,” Green said. “We just wanted to be sure that all schools are tech-driven and we’re ready for a safe school year as we look forward to 2022-2023.”
Parents like Joy Crenshaw are looking forward to the added layers of protection.
“I think the money is definitely a step in the right direction. I’m curious to see how they are going to do it. How they are going to allocate those funds,” she said.
The resolution was approved Tuesday but as of right now a timeline for when and how the money will be spent has not been released. We have sent questions to the district.
