Redefining the New Normal

Frank DeAngelis has given his all to the students and community of Columbine High School. Now, 14 years after the tragic shooting, DeAngelis is retiring as school principal.

These past years haven’t been all that easy, though. DeAngelis and many others survive on a daily basis, often suffering from survivors’ guilt from the April 20, 1999 attack.

On the morning of the shooting, DeAngelis was in his office. He led about 20 students to safety and survived with no apparent physical injuries. He suffers, however, from anxiety attacks so severe that they feel like heart attacks; relentless anxiety that contributed to the end of his 17-year marriage.

“Anyone who walked back in that building at Columbine High School—any teacher, student, parent— had to relive that day, day after day, as a constant reminder,” DeAngelis said. “It took a lot of courage. We had to redefine what normal is.”

Two days after the shooting, the principal went to visit his pastor seeking answers and has since, for more than a decade, heeded the advice of his pastor, who said, “Frank, there’s a reason you did not die that day. You have a cause. You need to rebuild that community.”

I have to wonder why DeAngelis stayed at Columbine, but I quickly realize that in heeding his pastor’s advice, he had made a commitment to his students. He vowed to stay at his job until those students who were in kindergarten at the time of the shooting had graduated from Columbine. Those students graduated in 2011.

Healing and mending continues within the Columbine community, but retirement doesn’t take the sting out of those horrific events. On a crusade, DeAngelis has helped raise awareness of warning signs of violence in high school students. This year, he was named Colorado Principal of the Year by the Colorado Association of School Executives.

During the past 12 years, the Columbine community also helped others in need as school violence became an epidemic. DeAngelis, knowing the pain events such as this cause, helped comfort and boost morale at area schools, including Deer Creek Middle School, where a gunman wounded two youth. Educator David Benke tackled the shooter, 32-year-old Bruco Strongeagle Eastwood, and other staff held him down until law enforcement arrived, 90 seconds later. Two other shootings in the vicinity left a high school student dead at Platte Canyon High School; and two dead and two wounded at the Youth With A Mission campus.

DeAngelis has seen the evolution of school tragedy and the instinct of educators to run toward the shooter(s) in order to save their students. In response, he has been instrumental in creating an active shooter program for grades Pre-K—12, which includes teaching staff how to survive during shooting instances.

Seeing success in his 34-year career at Columbine as a teacher, coach and administrator, DeAngelis would never take it for granted. Yet, his career has been even more fulfilling as children affected by the shooting chose to become teachers and guardians of Columbine High School. These students turned teachers have learned from DeAngelis’ personal code: protector, leader and friend.

Bullies Beware

Since Columbine, there have been tragic events, large and small. Even the slightest bullying event is a sore spot in the education system, so much so that the largest school district in Utah, the Alpine School District, is stepping up its security on buses to protect students from bullies.

This district’s buses carry about 21,000 students more than 19,000 miles per day. The district saw fit to invest nearly $100,000 on 48 of their 300 buses, equipping them with Gatekeeper surveillance cameras. These camera systems allow staff to see the door and the driver as well as get a good look at the 50 students on each bus, regardless of where they are sitting.

Time to Wake Up

Students have returned to school, but in the wake of the Newtown shooting, local Massachusetts schools are beefing up security. Districts have deployed new surveillance cameras, locked more doors and staff is rethinking safety strategy in order to tighten overall security.

Twenty school districts were surveyed in the Boston area; 19 of them have added new security measures, including new equipment or procedures at the elementary level. In Salem, schools have given teachers panic buttons that have a direct link to law enforcement when pushed. In Walpole, schools have been given six security cameras; and in Groton-Dunstable, staff will be trained in active shooter response.

Obviously, schools are taking different approaches to security, but they all share an understanding of what is involved. Schools have not been ordered to improve security, but districts have responded in their own way according to concerns from parents, students and teachers. The bottom line is that teachers want to feel safe in their workplace; students deserve to be safe while learning; and parents want to be able to know that while their children are in school, they aren’t fighting for their lives.

School security comes down to ownership, with students, teachers and staff being the stakeholders, and it’s our duty to keep them safe.

This article originally appeared in the October 2013 issue of Security Today.

Featured

  • New Gas Monkey Garage Venue Uses AI-Enhanced Video Technology

    Gas Monkey Garage, the automotive custom shop and entertainment brand founded by Richard Rawlings of Fast N’ Loud TV fame, has opened a vibrant new restaurant and bar in South Dakota, equipped with advanced, AI-enhanced video tech from IDIS Americas. Read Now

  • Data Driven, Proactive Response

    As cities face rising demands for smarter policing and faster emergency response, Real Time Crime Centers (RTCCs) are emerging as essential hubs for data-driven public safety. In this interview, two experts with deep field experience — Ross Bourgeois of New Orleans and Dean Cunningham of Axis Communications — draw on decades of operational, leadership and technology expertise to share how RTCCs are transforming public safety through innovation, interagency collaboration and a relentless focus on community impact. Read Now

  • Integration Imagination: The Future of Connected Operations

    Security teams that collaborate cross-functionally and apply imagination and creativity to envision and design their ideal integrated ecosystem will have the biggest upside to corporate security and operational benefits. Read Now

  • Smarter Access Starts with Flexibility

    Today’s workplaces are undergoing a rapid evolution, driven by hybrid work models, emerging smart technologies, and flexible work schedules. To keep pace with growing workplace demands, buildings are becoming more dynamic – capable of adapting to how people move, work, and interact in real-time. Read Now

  • Trends Keeping an Eye on Business Decisions

    Today, AI continues to transform the way data is used to make important business decisions. AI and the cloud together are redefining how video surveillance systems are being used to simulate human intelligence by combining data analysis, prediction, and process automation with minimal human intervention. Many organizations are upgrading their surveillance systems to reap the benefits of technologies like AI and cloud applications. Read Now

New Products

  • A8V MIND

    A8V MIND

    Hexagon’s Geosystems presents a portable version of its Accur8vision detection system. A rugged all-in-one solution, the A8V MIND (Mobile Intrusion Detection) is designed to provide flexible protection of critical outdoor infrastructure and objects. Hexagon’s Accur8vision is a volumetric detection system that employs LiDAR technology to safeguard entire areas. Whenever it detects movement in a specified zone, it automatically differentiates a threat from a nonthreat, and immediately notifies security staff if necessary. Person detection is carried out within a radius of 80 meters from this device. Connected remotely via a portable computer device, it enables remote surveillance and does not depend on security staff patrolling the area.

  • Camden CM-221 Series Switches

    Camden CM-221 Series Switches

    Camden Door Controls is pleased to announce that, in response to soaring customer demand, it has expanded its range of ValueWave™ no-touch switches to include a narrow (slimline) version with manual override. This override button is designed to provide additional assurance that the request to exit switch will open a door, even if the no-touch sensor fails to operate. This new slimline switch also features a heavy gauge stainless steel faceplate, a red/green illuminated light ring, and is IP65 rated, making it ideal for indoor or outdoor use as part of an automatic door or access control system. ValueWave™ no-touch switches are designed for easy installation and trouble-free service in high traffic applications. In addition to this narrow version, the CM-221 & CM-222 Series switches are available in a range of other models with single and double gang heavy-gauge stainless steel faceplates and include illuminated light rings.

  • HD2055 Modular Barricade

    Delta Scientific’s electric HD2055 modular shallow foundation barricade is tested to ASTM M50/P1 with negative penetration from the vehicle upon impact. With a shallow foundation of only 24 inches, the HD2055 can be installed without worrying about buried power lines and other below grade obstructions. The modular make-up of the barrier also allows you to cover wider roadways by adding additional modules to the system. The HD2055 boasts an Emergency Fast Operation of 1.5 seconds giving the guard ample time to deploy under a high threat situation.