New security measures at Cape Coral schools reassure parents

Ashline Motola is still adjusting to dropping her oldest son off at school.

“I was a stay at home mom,” Motola said. “They never went to daycare or anything. Sending them to school was nerve wracking enough.”

But some brand new security measures at Christa McAuliffe Charter Elementary School in Cape Coral are putting her mind at ease.

“It’s nice knowing when I send my kid to school, he’s in there he’s locked in and nobody else can get in,” Motola said.

Locked in by these new gates at the front of the school. An area that used to be open for anyone to walk through, but is now shut and locked during school hours.

“Visitors now can’t just walk through the breezeway,” Kevin Brown said, principal at Christa McAuliffe Charter Elementary School. “They have to go into our front office, show proper ID, so that gives us an understanding of who’s on campus and why they’re here.”

These adjustments to school security come after increasing shootings at schools. More than 215,00 students have experienced gun violence at school since 1999, according to a Washington Post database.

More taxpayer money has been allocated to school security. After 17 students were killed by a gunman at Parkland high school in April, the Lee County School Board applied measures that increased the security on its campuses. But funds are also being applied to technology and improved fortifications, not just security personnel.

Brown said the school worked with the Cape Coral Police Department to make several safety improvements this year, which include a new surveillance system.

Now, if a person looks up at any given point, one of these surveillance systems is not far from sight.

“We can see if people are coming on to campus,” Brown said. “We can react if needed if there’s ever a situation.”

The superintendent at Cape Charter Schools told WINK News it has updated security cameras at all campuses. It has added similar gates at several schools.

Within the next month, there will be a new guard station at the high school entrance.

Parents like Bobby Miniaci said the updates took some time to become acclimated with, but he is now on board with the changes.

“The safety of not just my kid but everyone elses kid,” Miniaci said, “is the number one topic on not just my mind, but every teacher and staff member here at the school.”