Schools
Stoughton High Safety Plan Stays Mostly Private
The sensitivity of the issue means that officials won't discuss the topic publically beyond broad terms.
STOUGHTON, MA — School security was the topic of the night at Monday’s joint meeting of the high school building committee, board of selectmen and the school committee. If you were looking for specifics, however, you had to be a member of one of those three committees to get the information.
Scot Woodin, a project manager for DRA Architects, gave a brief and broad overview of security measures at the new Stoughton High School during an open session that was less than 20 minutes. A more detailed discussion took place in executive session.
Many details of the security plan were not discussed in public due to its sensitive nature.
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“Security has been at the forefront of the building committee’s agenda and list of priorities for the design from the very beginning,” Woodin said. “We’ve exercised significant rigor in terms of looking at security for this building but again, we don’t bring this to the public aspect of the meeting because of the sensitivity of that information. Certain aspects of it need to be kept fairly confidential.”
Woodin said the new building will have a security alarm system, extensive surveillance, and the ability to monitor and playback recorded video. Camera placement will not be limited to the building and will extend to the football field and poles outside.
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A card reader system will be used to secure entrances to the building and once the doors are locked from the outside in the morning, the only way to get in will be the main entrance and administrative area.
"We’re sacrificing convenience for security in that respect and that was a decision made by the administration," Woodin said.
School officials will also be able to lock down portions of the building, allowing areas like the gymnasium, auditorium, or cafeteria to be used while restricting access to the classroom areas.
An overview of the site and floor plans were also provided.
The new Stoughton High School is scheduled to be ready for the 2019-20 school year.
Image via Stoughton High School Building Committee
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