Focusing on safety and security of all HISD students

Our hearts have been heavy as we mourn the loss of one of our students in the wake of the tragic shooting last week at Bellaire High School. It has been an incredibly difficult time for Bellaire High School and the Houston Independent School District community.

A tragedy of this magnitude is difficult to comprehend. As a parent, I am deeply saddened and angered by this horrific act of violence. Unfortunately, HISD is not immune to the plague of gun violence afflicting school campuses nationwide. 

The district is exploring measures to increase safety and security on every campus. I am personally meeting with students at Bellaire to hear from them and address their concerns, and I will be meeting with student representatives from our high schools on a recurring basis moving forward.

These meetings, along with reconvening safety and security council committees on every campus, will be a catalyst for increased vigilance and preventative measures in our schools. Another measure the district is exploring includes assessing middle schools and high schools for metal detectors as a screening measure for entry onto campuses.

As we analyze ways to improve the safety and provide secure environments for student learning, it’s important that we hear from our key community leaders on matters surrounding school safety and receive feedback on priorities and areas for improvement. I will be meeting with key community leaders to discuss such topics during a “School Safety: Key Community Leaders Discussion.”

The district is committed to vigilantly protecting students and staff at our schools. HISD will continue to evaluate our security measures, as we regularly do, in order to maximize the safety of our children and staff.

I want to thank all local law enforcement agencies, which acted swiftly to respond and apprehend a suspect. I am also grateful to the principal of Bellaire High School and the rest of the staff who took appropriate action to ensure no other students were physically harmed during the incident.

Crisis counselors will continue to be available to Bellaire students and staff for as long as they are needed. There will be additional HISD police officers on campus and patrols around the campus and extra administrative personnel to ensure the school is safe and secure.

As we look to the future of education in HISD and the conversations surrounding school safety, I am grateful for all that we are able to accomplish when we are working with each other for the benefit of our students.