Tahoma School district adds security measures to keep kids safe



MAPLE VALLEY, Wash. -- The Tahoma School District is in the lengthy process of spending $3 million on school improvements district-wide to improve student and teacher safety.

Schools like Rock Creek Elementary were built decades ago when security wasn't much of a thought. Now the district is making security a major priority.

Bambi Fuller said, "In a perfect world we wouldn’t need that stuff but unfortunately things happen."

Fuller has two kids under the age of 13. She loves what the district did during the summer break to keep her kids safe.

At Rock Creek and Glacier Park Elementary, the district will now lock a set of entry doors. This move forces any visitor to enter through the office before they can go into the hallway. The district is adding the extra layer of security after school shootings across the country and Western Washington.

District Communications Director Kevin Patterson said, "If there’s one truism about school security it’s that these incidents could happen anywhere at any time and we have to be prepared for that and vigilant."

The new high school that is under construction also has security in mind. When it is completed in 2017 it will be the largest high school in the state. District officials designed it to only have two entries so staff can keep track of visitors. The school will also have more than 100 cameras.

Parents we spoke with give the district high marks for the changes.

Fuller said, "Anything that the Tahoma district is doing to increase the safety for our students, my children, is awesome. I approve it 100%.”