MANSFIELD — Metal detectors are on their way to Mansfield City Schools.
The district’s board of education approved a $120,736 purchase agreement for the metal detectors at its special meeting on June 27. The purchase agreement with manufacturer CEIA USA includes the purchase of six systems, plus batteries and training for staff on how to use the machines.
“I definitely am glad that we are being proactive rather than reactive and keeping our school community safe for our students and our educators,” board president Renda Cline said at the time.
The metal detectors will be placed at the entrances at Malabar Intermediate, Mansfield Middle and Senior High.
Each system consists of two free-standing pillars, which entrants must pass through while holding their bookbags, purses or other items. All students will be required to walk through the metal detectors in order to enter their school building.
Andrea Moyer, director of school improvement and safety, said the devices can be configured so that items like smartphones and car keys won’t set them off.
Moyer and the district’s safety team visited other schools in Ohio that use the system before recommending them to the board. The committee told the board in June that one school with 1,000 students was able to quickly and easily file students through the detectors prior to the start of the school day.
According to Jefferson, the OPENGATE detectors the school will be purchasing are the same ones used at the Ohio State University’s Ohio Stadium and the Great American Ball Park, where the Cincinnati Reds play.
Jefferson said the metal detectors aren’t a direct response to an incident within the schools; they’re simply one of many strategies the district to provide a healthy and safe environment.
“This is just another layer of a safety and security protocol,” he said. “Many school districts are moving in this direction and we have visited schools that have this.”
Another layer of that protocol is the district’s participation in a Peace on My Block initiative. The district will hang signs around its buildings urging students to chose peace. Educators with the Mansfield School Employees Association have agreed to consider promoting non-violence as part of their social emotional curriculum.
The head of the district said the detectors are one way Mansfield City Schools are keeping up with the changing times. He said metal detectors are becoming more common in school districts and colleges across the state.
“The world of education like the world business has changed. If you went to a an Ohio State football game, you’re going to walk through metal detectors,” he said. “Would you have walked through metal detectors 15 years ago? No.”
Treasurer Tacy Courtright said the district’s metal detectors will arrive in about seven to nine weeks, but facilities manager Bob Booth is working with CEIA to try and get them in earlier.
Despite their use by multiple schools across the state, some studies challenge the idea that metal detectors make schools safer.
A study of 37 school shootings conducted by the U.S. Secret Service and the Department of Education found that the presence of metal detectors “isn’t likely to be effective” in stopping school shootings. Instead, researchers recommended encouraging students to report what they hear and watch for activity like gathering weapons or making plans.
A 2011 research article from the American School Health Association’s Journal of School Health found there were few studies on whether or not metal detectors reduced violent behavior in schools. The authors wrote there was “insufficient data” to draw a conclusion, but noted some research suggests the presence of metal detectors may make students feel less safe.
When asked about how metal detectors may impact students’ feelings of safety, Jefferson pointed out that they’re already common in other settings.
“When you walk into a governmental building, do you feel danger?” he asked. “Because if you walk into any governmental building, you walk into a security system.”
