SAN ANTONIO — As Texas kids prepare to return to school within the next few weeks, the job of keeping everyone safe is monumental.
The state-wide challenge is just one of the topics that came up at Sunday's house committee briefing involving the investigation into what went wrong at Robb Elementary in Uvalde.
State Representative Dustin Burrows, the chair of the investigating committee, called increasing security at Texas schools a Herculean task.
"There are 80,000 buildings in the state of Texas, and we have to recognize that as we talk about this policy," Burrows said.
Committee member Eva Guzman added moving forward is hard work that must be done.
"That truth is heavy and it's hard because it lays bare human failures and it makes us confront collapses in our systems. They were supposed to work. They were supposed to protect the innocents who now lie in their graves," Guzman said.
Guzman said the committee report is a starting point.
"With this report, families that are crushed by sorrow and pain will now have desperately needed answers, but no report can heal broken hearts," she said. "Only God can do that."
In San Antonio's largest local school district, Northside, which is home to more than 100,000 students spread across 125 campus locations, district leaders said they are always training and looking for innovative ways to ensure the safety of both kids and the adults who care for them.
With the start of school around the corner on August 22, NISD spokesman Barry Perez said they are doing what they have always done.
"We are very vigilant with procedures and protocols we have in place," he said.
Because easy access to victims was an obvious problem in Uvalde, Perez said a robust campaign to secure doors has been underway.
"We are physically inspecting every single interior and exterior door. As of this morning we have completed inspecting just shy of 17,800 doors at 95 of our schools," Perez said. "Of those inspections, we have found just over 1,000 doors where door hardware needed to be addressed. Whether it was a simple oil or a minor adjustment to hinge replacements or larger adjustments, all to make sure that the hardware on the door was functioning and safe."
"Those types of things will make parents and staff feel more comfortable." Perez said, adding that the full inspection of all doors should be completed shortly.
Perez said school personnel have also been inspecting every Knox entry package. The Knox system is a secure master key located near the front door of every single campus that allows first responders immediate access to the main door of each facility.
Perez said communication failures were mentioned in the Uvalde report, so NISD has also been making sure all public address systems are functioning properly.
Citing the danger of human error by staff members who may have disabled locking devices with rocks or magnets, Perez said when staff members return from their summer breaks soon, there will be a renewed emphasis on the importance of safety systems.
"When you look at the amount of money that is invested in security on our campuses? Millions and millions of dollars can be literally wiped out with a rock that's picked up off the ground and used to keep a door open. That type of message has to be shared," Perez said.
Perez said parents may notice changes to procedures as well.
"Parents have to understand there may be things that look different. Access may be different. It may be an inconvenience to them but it's a matter of keeping staff and children safe," he said.
Perez said parents might also benefit by watching a video produced in 2019 that offers age appropriate training in how to react to an active shooter threat.
"The video is online and accessible," he said. "We are certainly proud of it. It does a great job of prepping staff and students."
Perez said shortly after this video was launched, the pandemic forced many into distance learning, but now that students are returning to campus, it is a good time for families to invest time in watching the video together.
NISD Chief of Police Charlie Carnes said he is confident that his force is well-trained and highly motivated to respond to any emergency.
"Our expectation is to respond immediately to stop whomever is involved in a criminal action. They are trained to go in and to eliminate and stop the criminal and I do feel confident that that would happen," Carnes said.
Wanda Longoria is the President of the Northside AFT. She said while NISD has done a thorough job of planning and securing its facilities, the job of keeping everyone safe is bigger still.
"Northside schools are as safe as can be expected," Longoria said. "The district has poured planning time, resources, money, all to ensure our campuses are as safe as possible. We continue to ask that the Governor do something more than he's done."
"After the Uvalde incident, we called for a special session to take place to address and vote on common sense gun reform laws. He has yet to do that," Longoria said.
Longoria said schools need to be much more than locked fortresses.
"Let's be reminded that schools were never meant to keep people in or out. They are places of community discourse and learning, so we need to be very careful that we don't set up schools as prisons because our children should feel welcomed. Our community should feel welcomed and safe," Longoria said.
Longoria had strong words for Governor Greg Abbott.
"Especially after the Uvalde incident, he's sending a message to our state, he's sending a message to our parents, to our school employees, to our students that he really doesn't care about public schools or their safety so the time to change is now and the only way that can happen is legislative action," she said.