Owensboro Public Schools has implemented a weapons detection system to use at the entrance of middle and high schools as well as for indoor and outdoor events across the district.
The school system placed five units at Owensboro High School, three at Owensboro Middle School, and two at the Owensboro Innovation Campus.
The decision to use the OpenGate Detectors came after seeing the effectiveness that professional-level venues such as the Cincinnati Reds’ Great American Ballpark and Tennessee Titans’ Nissan Stadium have had with the system, according to OPS Public Information Officer Jared Revlett.
He said another key part was ensuring that it was a smooth use for students. The “free-flowing” screening device allows people to walk through quickly — without taking off backpacks — but can still instantly detect dense metals and weapons.
“That’s what we wanted to do. We wanted to have an efficient system that searches what we need to search for, but that wouldn’t create just a backlog of people standing in front of the building,” Revlett said.
OPS purchased 10 units (plus batteries, chargers, test pieces, freight, and training) for a total of $169,313.90 from Communications Technologies.
The scanner is set to detect any form of weapons including knives, brass knuckles, and firearms. To do so, it scans for metals and shapes; however, that can lead to unintended items being detected, such as certain reusable water bottles, spray cans, and some school supplies.
OHS Principal Jennifer Luttrell said it took a few days to learn how sensitive the system is and what everyday items are detected that are not meant to be. That list has included daily school items such as notebooks, three-ring binders, and school-issued laptops and chargers.
“We have a graphic that we sent to the students and families of what items the detector finds and what not to put in their backpack,” Luttrell said.
Students can hand those items to the school’s safety team, which returns the items to the student on the other side of the scanner.
Each morning at OHS, a team of 10 staff members facilitates the scanner process. Luttrell said those staff members will be involved in other extracurricular activities throughout the school, so they will also be manning the scanners at those events.
Revlett and Luttrell said that the units are very portable and have already been used for soccer games at Shifley Park.
“If an elementary school is having a special night where they invite a bunch of people in or they want to use them for at night, they’re easy to pick up and move them over to that direction and let the school use them,” Revlett said.
Revlett and Lutrell noted that OHS will use the scanners during the football and basketball seasons as an additional layer of protection when entering Rash Stadium or the school gym. They encourage guests to plan to be at the game earlier to ensure that it goes smoothly.
Luttrell also added that students have been involved in how the system is being implemented. She noted that students asked that the system be effective but “not feel like airport security” when entering the high school.
Lutrell said since school started students have said they feel safe overall.
“This isn’t the be-all to end-all; this doesn’t eliminate if someone has the feeling to do these things, but it does prevent those weapons from entering the building,” she said.
The school also instituted a new identification policy to be able to immediately identify any person in the building.
All staff and students are required to have ID badges around their necks. If a student doesn’t have their badge on that day, they receive a visitor pass with their name that they are required to wear.
“It’s just an added layer of safety and security,” Luttrell said. “It gives us an instant identification of who should be in our building, and also, if emergency personnel need to come into our building, it gives them a quick view of who may need assistance and who may be an intruder or who they may need to approach first as a potential threat to our building.”
