WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — North Forsyth High School students returned to in-person classes Friday as the community is still grappling with the deadly stabbing.
Winston-Salem/Forsyth Schools Superintendent Don Phipps said the students aren’t going back to the same school security policy that was in place before the killing.
“What I’ve asked is that they are the devices that we have that are used every day,“ he said in an interview with Spectrum News 1 on Friday.
The new policy requires that middle and high schools perform either a safe entry check or a randomized check every day.
Right now, all the high schools have a pair of detectors, while middle schools rotate.
Phipps said to provide OpenGate detectors to every middle school, they would need about $2 million.
District leaders said they have been trying to get more OpenGate sensors for more than 2 years, but now they could come sooner rather than later.
“I’ve also had a couple of folks in the community that have stepped up. They want to have a conversation, and I’m hoping that we’ll be able to find the opportunity to fund that,” Phipps said.
Despite a budget deficit triggering a reduction in force, school leaders said the number of staff responsible for security hasn’t changed.
But Phipps, who was a school psychologist in Cumberland County where he also led trauma outreach, said that metal detectors are just one piece to keeping students safe.
“We have to know what their normal is and where they don’t seem to be normal. We have to know what resources exist within our community and encourage them to seek help in the community,” he said. “But I think it really is about caring for one another and making sure that they’re the best person they can be.”
He said he is ready for the role and hopes his experience will make a difference for Forsyth County students.
“My desire to be here is to help be a part of the solution,” he said. “For me, it’s about staff morale and the well-being of the folks that make up the school system. They’re operating under a really heavy cloud of just negative, and this is not any different.”
“We’ve talked about changing the narrative and the things that I see when I go out and do school visits,” Phipps said. “I want the public to know about that.”
The surviving student involved in the fatal stabbing Tuesday will not face charges, the Forsyth County district attorney said Thursday.
Crisis response teams will also be available for affected students as long as needed.
Additionally, Phipps says that the district is taking a look at phone policies to see if any revisions are necessary.
He said that they are working with many partners that have reached out in the aftermath to offer anti-violence programs for students.
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Sasha Strong
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