NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — While some students, parents and teachers say the new safety measures presented by the Newport News School Board are a step in the right direction, others say more needs to be done.
The Newport News Education Association held a town hall Thursday night at the Main Street Library.
The meeting was a small one. It was mainly union leaders, school board members and three teachers talking together to find solutions.
Despite the small turnout, they had a lot to say.
Safety, discipline and giving teachers a voice were the three main themes discussed while School Board Chair Lisa Surles-Law and Vice Chair Dr. Terri Best were in the room.
"Everybody can have influence if we consider everybody that’s in our school environment an educator, whether they are the custodian, whether they’re the cafeteria worker, whether they're the janitor. All of them can have positive influence on children," said one union member.
One teacher expressed concern over how quickly changes are being made, like the installation and training of the weapons detection systems.
"I feel like we’re barely wrapping our heads around one aspect and then another is coming out of the blue," he said.
Surles-Law said she is aware getting students through the detectors has been a slow process in the first days, but they are working on it.
Another teacher expressed concern over mental health resources after her colleague at Richneck Elementary had to wait weeks to see a therapist through the school program.
"She has to take off tomorrow because she’s seeking help from that EAP. She has an appointment tomorrow, but she says can't get any rest."
Newport News Education Association President Dr. James Graves said he hears their concerns. He created an anonymous tip line for division staff members and said he’s getting a lot of feedback that way.
"The tip line is very successful. It is there for people who have their safety concerns and they can present them to me," he said.
"A lot of people are making use of the tip line," echoed another union member.
Graves said he’s looked over some of the new safety protocols being put in place in the division.
"The measures are fine, but we still need to concentrate on the behavior issue," Graves said.
During that meeting, other ideas people presented included uniforms to identify who is a student and who isn’t, handcuffs for SROs to be used just to diffuse a situation, and having students do school work or community service while suspended instead of just sitting at home.
Graves said he will do what it takes to get everyone in the division moving in the right direction.
"I work here. I was born and raised here. I love my city, so I want to see us strive. I want to see it move forward. So, we have to have that attitude and that behavior to say, 'Okay, things has happened in the past, but let’s get it moving in the right direction,'" he said before the meeting.
The next Newport News Education Association town hall is on April 20 at 6 p.m. at the Denbigh Community Center. Union and non-union members are welcome.