Metal Detectors At All Buckingham Schools?

Published 2:44 pm Tuesday, April 14, 2015

BUCKINGHAM — Division Superintendent Dr. Cecil Snead told the Buckingham Board of Supervisors that “a comprehensive look” would be given to the cost of having metal detectors at each school.

The request to look into the pricing of the detectors came from District Six Supervisor and Board Vice-Chairman Joe N. Chambers Jr. during a March 18 budget work session.

“Let me ask you a question…” Chambers began, directing his inquiry to Snead, who sat alongside members of the school board in the audience. “Could you find out how much it would cost [to have] a metal detector [at] our school system? It’s just impossible for teachers to see anybody, you know, detect anything coming in on a student…[We have] the same thing at the courthouse down there. If somebody comes in with a gun or knife in their pocket, that thing will go off…”

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Chambers asked if Snead could “check into it.”

“I can certainly give that due diligence and have a good solid figure, yes sir,” Snead replied.

“I’m just thankful we haven’t had a disaster here in the county…We never know when it might happen,” Chambers stated.

In mid-January, the high school was placed on lockdown for almost the entire school day after the administration learned that a weapon might be in the school. That afternoon, a weapon was discovered on school grounds, and three students were identified and charged in connection to the incident.

All three were recently expelled from school.

“When you bring it, bring the pros and cons to that…” District Four Supervisor John Staton asked of Snead.

Following an inquiry from Snead, Supervisor Chambers said he wanted to see what it would cost to have metal detectors at “all the schools.”

“Then you’ve got to look at hiring someone to monitor those…” noted District Two Supervisor Donnie N. Bryan, a teacher at the primary school.

“We’ll give it a comprehensive look,” Snead reiterated.

Buckingham County has six schools: the preschool, the primary school, the elementary school, the middle school, the high school, and the career and technical education (CTE) center, none of which currently have metal detectors.