CYPRESS, Texas — Cy-Fair ISD’s Yeager Elementary may have been built in 1975, but it now features some of the most modern security measures.
"They have to use a phone system to buzz in," CFISD Police Chief Eric Mendez said. "There’s a camera here so they can be identified.”
Security vestibules known as “man-traps” are the first line of defense beyond the front door, which is surrounded by bullet-resistant glass.
"Shot them with a rifle, with a shotgun, with 40 caliber, 9 millimeter," Mendez said. "We hit them with axes and bats and tried to tear holes big enough to climb through ... it’s impossible.”
Mendez joined other district leaders on Monday to talk about safety. It's something all Texas school districts were asked to re-assess following the mass shooting at a Uvalde elementary school.
"That's what keeps me up at night and, I’m sure, superintendents across the state," CFISD Superintendent Dr. Mark Henry said. "That anyone would cause harm, not only to our children but our staff.”
Henry believes Cy-Fair ISD is ahead of the curve in many ways. The district has poured millions of dollars from voter-supported bond programs into enhancing security at schools across the district.
"You know, we talk about academics, we talk about finances," Henry said. "But let’s face it, a facility has to be secure and safe.”
Recent upgrades include adding walls to previously more open-concept schools.
Each classroom at Yeager also features intruder locksets on the door, lockdown buttons that immediately put the campus and police on alert and new internet-connected phones for calling 911.
"It goes directly to emergency responders, our police department responds," CFISD Assistant Superintendent Matt Morgan said. "They can tell exactly what classroom it was dialed from.”
Less technological additions include reminders to not keep doors propped open. There are sensors letting staff know when they are. And there are security cameras covering the inside and outside of school buildings.
"We’re always looking at better ways to enhance the safety and security of our schools,” CFISD Chief Operations Officer Roy Sprague said.
All while trying to keep learning environments as school-like as possible. Anonymous tips about potential threats and intervention come more into play in middle and high schools since school shooters are often students.