All Saints Episcopal School students walk past rows of vegetables they planted in 2017 in Tyler. After the news of a horrific shooting at a Nashville private school broke last week, several East Texas private schools are voicing their condolences and doubling down on their own campus security.

After the news broke of a horrific shooting at a Nashville private school last week, several East Texas private schools are voicing their condolences and doubling down on their own campus security.

In the latest act of gun violence that has plagued America, a 28-year-old from Nashville fatally shot three children and three adults just after 10 a.m. March 27 inside the Covenant School which is in the affluent Green Hills neighborhood. Children in preschool through sixth grade had just begun their final full week of classes before Easter break.

The Brook Hill School in Bullard immediately responded to the tragedy by sending out a letter by Head of School Rod Fletcher Monday afternoon. The letter expressed the shared grief for the families affected and reinforced the schools dedication to student and staff safety.

Fletcher told parents they could be reassured the school is “taking measures to ensure the safety” of its students and staff.

The letter from Fletcher read, in part, “The events at The Covenant School serve as a reminder that school shootings can happen anywhere, at any time. However, we want you to know that we have implemented comprehensive safety protocols to minimize the risk of such an event occurring on our campus.”

The Brook Hill’s security measures include the following:

• Controlled Access: The campus is equipped with controlled access points and security cameras to ensure only authorized individuals are allowed in buildings.
• Security Personnel: The campus has dedicated security personnel stationed throughout the campus who monitor security cameras and are trained to respond to emergencies on campus.
• Emergency Response Team: The school has a team of trained school resource officers on campus to respond to emergencies and maintain a secure environment for our students.
• On-Campus Police Officer: The Brook Hill has a full-time police officer on campus and on many days he is supplemented by other officers on campus.
• Emergency Response Plans: The school has a detailed emergency response plans in place for a variety of scenarios, including active shooter situations.
• Regular lockdown drills: The school conducts lockdown drills throughout the school year to ensure its students and staff know how to respond in the event of an emergency.

“We take our responsibility for the safety of our students very seriously, and we are constantly reviewing and updating our protocols to ensure that we provide the most secure learning environment possible,” Fletcher said.

Director of School Security Bobby Brasher said the school currently has several safety measures in place such as teacher and staff in service training on students in crisis, all doors locked with controlled access, cameras throughout both campuses and on the Brook Hill dormitory village, raptor background check and identification system for visitors, police officer on campus, active defender cell phone notification system for all staff, and armed response (ERT) team commissioned and certified through the Department of Public Safety who are CPR trained, stop the bleed trained, basic first aid trained, and Narcan trained.

However, following the recent tragedy, Brasher said the school plans to add more cameras, increase its ERT team, and also increase training.

Principal of St. Mary’s Catholic School Darbie Dallman Safford in Longview said students and staff continue to mourn the loss and all involved in the shooting.

“On behalf of St. Mary’s Catholic School, I want to express our condolences on the loss of life as a result of the recent school shooting at Nashville Covenant Elementary School. The Gospel of Christ is the Gospel of life, and that means every life is precious,” she said. “We all mourn the loss. Our prayers remain with those who have perished and the families, friends, and colleagues who must now cope with their tragic loss.”

Dr. Larry Taylor, President and CEO of the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI), which serves more than 25,000 schools in 108 countries, spoke to the Tyler Morning Telegraph about both the associations safety protocol and what steps can be taken in the future to eliminate such violent acts.

Private schools in Tyler, Lindale, Henderson, and Longview are among those accredited by ASCI.

Taylor said ASCI accreditation protocol requires accredited schools to have several procedures I place including Indicator 6.1: A comprehensive written security and crisis management plan has been developed, regularly reviewed, and implemented, and it is supported by appropriate training for all staff and students, Indicator 6.2: The school communicates with legal authorities (i.e., the fire department, police department, and other applicable agencies), parents, media, and community members when a crisis or a major incident occurs, Indicator 6.11: The school maintains the site, facilities, services, and equipment to provide an environment that is safe, secure, and orderly, and Indicator 6.12: The facilities are secure and suitable for the size of the school; the school environment is monitored and maintained to ensure it is conducive to the instruction and development of the whole child.

“As an accrediting body, ACSI takes the safety of students and staff very seriously,” he said. “The school would need to provide evidence for each, and 6.1 and 6.12 are critical indicators.”

Taylor explained the importance of educators to recognize the mental well-being of students which the association emphasizes in both students and alumni.

“I think it begins with the well-being of the child. There are so many different things that we as educators can notice in students, even former students and alumni that really tell us a lot about how they’re doing mentally; this is always a major emphasis,” he said. “And, of course, we have to consider and have always considered the physical safety of students as one of the highest priorities. The campus needs to offer an environment that is safe, secure and maintains the utmost standards.”

Taylor said ACSI has invested significantly in researching and strategically supporting flourishing school communities.

“ACSI believes that equipping leaders with a biblically based philosophy of education is essential to the health and success of the entire school community,” he said.

Taylor also expressed his condolences for those affected by the Nashville shooting.

“We are grieving and praying for the families that have been tragically impacted by this act of violence,” he said. “Our hearts go out to all families involved.”

Elaine Phillips, All Saints Episcopal School counselor in Tyler, said the All Saints community also empathizes with families affected by the shooting.

“We are deeply saddened by this heartbreaking news. Our hearts are with all the families affected by this tragedy, and with the entire Covenant community and the city of Nashville as they respond and grieve this terrible loss,” she said. “We are with the families and the community of Nashville, and we pray for the safety of all students and school personnel. While we cannot alleviate the pain of this tragic event, we remain dedicated to safety — both physical and emotional.”

Phillips went on to say the school continually reviews procedures when challenging times arise.

“During challenging moments like this, we take the time to review the procedures that are currently in place in order to improve our safety protocols. We will, as always, continue to do security and safety drills with faculty and students,” she said. “At All Saints, we take security very seriously for the safety of our students and faculty. All Saints has 79 monitored surveillance cameras across campus, and we have armed security guards manning the entrance at all times. We have security and staff visible, present and engaged throughout the day.”

“All Saints understands the importance of keeping our students, faculty, and staff safe,” Phillips added. “We have a crisis team that meets regularly, as well as a Crisis Management Consultant with many years of experience.”

The National Institute of Justice has identified five major facts about mass school shootings which include most people who commit a mass shooting are in crisis leading up to it and are likely to leak their plans to others which present opportunities for intervention. The institute says threat assessment is a promising prevention strategy to assess and respond to mass shooting threats as well as other threats of violence by students. Individuals who commit a school shooting are most likely to obtain a weapon by theft from a family member which indicates a need for more secure firearm storage practices. Additionally, the institute says an overwhelming majority of individuals who commit K-12 mass shootings struggle with various aspects of mental well-being.

Education Week has been tracking school shootings since 2018, with a total count of 157 such shootings. This year alone there have been 13 school shootings that resulted in injuries or deaths.