Missouri High School Installs 44 New Classroom Doors for Safety
"In some of these older schools, like our high school was built in 1934, it is a beautiful building, but back in 1934, a lot of our doors were not really built at the time when safety and security was probably at the foremost of someone's attention,” Superintendent Susan Johnson said.
- By Jessica Davis
- January 09, 2019
When students, faculty and staff returned to Hannibal High School after winter break, there were 44 new classroom doors on campus. The new doors are part of the high school’s efforts to secure classrooms in case of an emergency.
The original classroom doors dated back to 1934 and were made of a thin wood framing filled with glass panes.
"A lot of the times it was old wood, so if it was really hot in the building the wood would swell and my door wouldn't even shut so there was no locking it,” said Tammy Watkins, a Hannibal High School Special Service Teacher.
The Hannibal School District wanted to install new doors because of the outdated nature of the original building.
"In some of these older schools, like our high school was built in 1934, it is a beautiful building, but back in 1934, a lot of our doors were not really built at the time when safety and security was probably at the foremost of someone's attention,” Superintendent Susan Johnson said.
Johnson said the new doors are essential to improve safety and security for those inside the building.
"We do have a pane of glass in them now because obviously you want to be able to look out, but it is bulletproof glass, and the other good feature is the doors lock automatically when they are shut,” Johnson explained.
The district paid $77,000 for the new doors.
Johnson said some of the other, original campuses in the district could benefit from new doors. The district is working on it, she said.
About the Author
Jessica Davis is the Associate Content Editor for 1105 Media.