Chicago-Area School Hires First Security Director

Chicago-Area School Hires First Security Director

West Aurora School District hires officer to increase security

  • By Sydny Shepard
  • November 29, 2018

Chicago-area school district West Aurora District 129 for the first time has hired a security officer to oversee campus security. Superintendent Jeff Craig introduced Officer Kevin Triplett to parents, students and faculty in a podcast distributed on the district website.

The West Aurora School District was one of several districts in 2015 to adopt a nationwide active shooter or intruder protocol called ALICE, which is a change in response from when students and teachers were instructed to hide in classrooms, lock doors and turn off the lights. ALICE stands for Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter and Evacuate. 

The new security director has been developing plans and implementing strategies such as ALICE since he was hired on July 1. Triplett will oversee safety drills, address safety concerns at the different buildings and develop communication measures for parents with students.

As soon as he was hired, Triplett conducted training for all district administrators and has conducted safety school drills. 

Superintendent Craig said times have changed since he began his career as an educator 28 years ago.

"We didn't need to have safe vestibules, identification placards or badges to enter a building. This is a whole new premise about keeping students and staff safe and it is a priority. It is challenging and at times frustrating but it is not going away," Craig said.

About the Author

Sydny Shepard is the Executive Editor of Campus Security & Life Safety.

Featured

  • Survey: Fewer 20 Percent of School Leaders Consider Their Main Entrance “Completely Secure”

    Singlewire Software, provider of solutions that help keep people safe and informed, releases the findings of its inaugural School Entrance Security Report, which captured responses from more than 500 school staff members across the United States. This research highlights the concerns and challenges schools are facing in securing their entrances and keeping students and staff safe from potential threats Read Now

  • Securing Higher Education: Combating Enrollment Fraud and Empowering Student Financial Success

    Higher education institutions are facing a costly and growing crisis: enrollment fraud. Between 2020 and 2022, the cost[1] of acquiring a new student surged by up to 32%, straining already tight budgets. At the same time, “ghost students” using stolen identities to enroll fraudulently put institutions at even greater financial risk. Read Now

  • How Composable Security Technologies Fortify Campus Safety

    Campus security teams have faced myriad risks threatening the safety and well-being of students and faculty this semester. Leaders have made tough tradeoffs about where to focus and how to channel limited resources to best protect their communities — but they now have a much-needed lift to their toolkit. Read Now

  • How Emerging Technologies are Transforming the School Security Landscape

    Students can't focus on learning when they're worried about their safety. As education systems nationwide face evolving security challenges with limited resources, a new generation of integrated technology solutions is helping schools create safer environments while maximizing staff efficiency. Read Now

Most   Popular