Farmington Public Schools to advance safety measures

FARMINGTON, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — Farmington Public Schools says it is seeing growth with more than 3,000 students across its six campuses, and with growth comes increased concerns for safety.

In a recent district survey, the district found that about 89% of parents would like to see weapon detection systems placed in all secondary school buildings and 90% supported the idea of having an “armed presence” on all campuses.

Superintendent Jon Laffoon says he has worked in education for 25 years, and since then, he has seen firsthand how safety concerns have risen.

“Safety has changed. And so, we’ve got to stay on top of that and continue to get better each year at safety,” said Laffoon.

Laffoon says the district is in agreeance with the parents and that changes could be implemented in as little as six weeks. Weapons detectors will be installed at Farmington High School, Farmington Junior High and Cardinal Academy. Additionally, all campuses will be staffed with an armed officer.

While no incidents have occurred to spark this change, Laffoon says it’s part of the district’s plan to think ahead.

“We want to be proactive before we get there. You know, if you wait until something happens, then you’re more reactive. We have not. But, we’ve seen all across the nation and the state that the things that have occurred from the standpoint of weapons, and we want to protect our students and staff before we get to that point,” said Laffoon.

In total, the weapons detectors systems will cost about $80,000 of district funds. However, with a growing student population, Laffoon says providing protection is worth it.

“We’re almost 3,000 students, and when I got here, we were a little over 2,500,” said Laffoon.

Additional safety measures include reducing the number of entrances at each campus, replacing locks, and traffic changes. Parents were also surveyed about adding storm shelters to campus.

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