ALEDO, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) – One North Texas school district is beefing up security as a direct response to the shooting in Florida.
The district says they’d rather pay for cops even if it means making cuts elsewhere.
“Fact is in a school district, if you hire a police officer, you can’t hire an algebra teacher so we have to decide what is most important,” said Aledo ISD Police Chief Fred Collie.
In a letter posted to the district’s website, Aledo’s superintendent says he hopes to get funding from the board of trustees to have a full-time officer at every school in the district. Chief Collie says that could mean the addition of three or four more officers.
The item will come up for discussion at the March 19 board meeting.
“I believe the community wants more officers as well,” said Collie. “It came directly from the board or trustees.”
Michelle Johnson has several kids at Aledo schools.
“It does make me a little sad that we have gotten to that point but that’s the time we are in,” she said. “I have a student at McAanallay which is 6th grade and I volunteer there. I think about what if someone were to come in and try to get access to the building, ‘What can we do?’”