Crime & Safety

School Safety a Priority in Brecksville-Broadview Heights

The district is working on creating new maps of the buildings as part of a grant.

at the is just one way the Brecksville-Broadview Heights schools and surrounding communities are working to keep students safe.

Last year, the and the were awarded a Community Oriented Policing Services grant, known as a COPS grant for short.

The department and district have :

  • Creation of a mapping system for all the district’s buildings,
  • Completion of a full assessment with suggestions for improvements for all the district’s buildings,
  • Installation of cameras at the elementary schools, and
  • Installation of new locks at .

The maps will label parts of each building and will be a good guide for first responders in the case of an emergency, said Larry Tomec, director of business services.

“They’ll be able to respond more quickly,” Tomec said.

To help achieve those goals, the district entered into two contracts—one with Foremost Safety Solutions and one with National School Safety and Security Services Inc.—during the February school board meeting. Representatives from National School Safety and Security Services Inc. visited the district last week to begin the assessment.

Tomec told the school board on Monday that the company had researched the district before its visit, reading up on board policies and reviewing current building plans. While in the area, representatives met with members of the district, as well as local authorities. The report should be complete in three to four weeks, Tomec said.

Superintendent Scot Prebles said part of the plan would include professional development for staff on how to deal with crises and ways to educate students. The most important part of any security plan is the people, he said.

The grant will pay for half of the above projects and the district is responsible for the other half. The total cost will be about $122,000, so the district’s share is about $61,000.


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