Metal detectors approved for Granville County elementary schools

"Metal detectors are just one more tool in our toolbox to keep our students safe and secure," said Bill Graham, the Executive Director Of Operations & Safety of Granville County Public Schools. "It's not going to solve all of our problems, but it can serve as a deterrent and eliminate one risk factor."

Recent national and local incidents have changed the sentiment around how the district addresses school security.

"At the beginning of the year, if you would have asked that question, overwhelmingly, it would have been, ‘no, there was no appetite for that whatsoever,’" Graham said. "But since Uvalde and then in Virginia with the 6-year-old, that sentiment has changed."

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Dr. Stan Winborne, associate superintendent of Granville County Public Schools, also discussed the process for students and guests.

"We're going to be installing a traditional magnetometer walk-through metal detector; It simply detects metal, any type of metal, on a person," Winborne said. "My understanding is that some of the more advanced and expensive systems detect certain shapes or sizes of items rather than what they're made of."

Winborne described the plan as ensuring students are safe in a school environment.

During Monday's board meeting, parents also voiced their concerns about school safety.

"I have a daughter in elementary school, and I think it'd be fantastic to sleep a little easier at night knowing that was there," said parent Wes Godwin. "The fear of the stuff that goes on in schools - shootings, things like that. I think I'd feel a little bit more comfortable if there was a detector, making sure everybody was clean going in."

Winborne also advised people at the meeting that they have had metal detectors available at their secondary schools for several years but have not started using them regularly until this year. The decision made people like Robyn Lake, a grandparent, feel at ease.

"I think that's fine. I think it's good for the safety of our children,” Lake said. "I work at the hospital, and they just recently put in a weapons detection system, and I was super happy about that."

The plan will affect students and visitors, but several people have shared concerns that it will change the schools into a “prison-like” system if this occurs. A survey shows that of its 843 responses, 87.5% are in favor, and 12.5% are against the plan.

In February, the Gwinnett County Public School District announced metal detectors in its secondary schools, which include eight elementary schools, according to the district website.

Each metal detector's cost can range from $3,000 to $5,000, which the county's middles and highs have.

Several other school districts in central North Carolina have recently announced plans to make similar security upgrades this school year.