What's happening?
Heather Stoner, GISD's director of operations and school safety, provided an update on the district's school marshal program as well as recent safety and security audits at a Dec. 18 meeting.
Stoner told the board of trustees the district worked closely with the Georgetown Police Department to create the positions since they were approved in August. She also said the police department's partnership with the district will continue with the installation of school marshals, meaning school resource officers will still be present on GISD campuses.
"This has been a really new experience for us," Stoner said. "What an important decision that requires a bit of thoughtfulness and intentionality in how we move forward with it."
What else?
Stoner also shared a recent Texas Education Agency safety and security audit of the district's door locks had a recent finding that was not in compliance with state requirements. This is the second finding to occur during the 2023-24 school year, she said, with the first reported in September.
Since that time, the district has been audited by the TEA 11 times. These audits consist of a TEA representative checking exterior doors of school buildings to ensure they are all locked as well as checking that visitor protocols are being followed. Auditors also review records of weekly door sweeps conducted by campus staff.
Corrective actions are being taken, Stoner said, but additional details will not be shared with the public.
"I understand that people may want details, but because it's a safety-related issue, we would never want to compromise the safety of any of our campuses or students," Stoner said. "We don't release any sensitive information in public forum."
