Wylie Independent School District has become the first to enlist the services of a private security firm in order to meet new state-mandated campus security standards.
L&P Global Security will fill the gap in Wylie ISD’s team of school-resource officers — totaling 10 officers from Wylie and Sachse police departments — by supplying 13 security officers, plus one supervisor. All 20 school campuses in Wylie will henceforth have armed security.
As such, the district will be in compliance with the newly passed House Bill 3 requiring “that at least one armed security officer is present during regular school hours at each district campus.”
Since the tragic school shooting in Uvalde, where 21 people were killed, the issue of school safety has been at the forefront of the national conversation.
Some district officials have opted to boost their security protocols using modern technology, such as AI-boosted scanners at the entrance of school facilities instead of metal detectors, as previously covered in The Dallas Express. Others, like Dallas ISD, have instituted clear backpack policies.
Yet, alongside identifying ways to enhance campus security, district officials must figure out how to pay for it.
In the case of Wylie ISD’s new contract with L&P Global Security, the cost for the 2023-24 school year amounts to $534,170.
Although the state has provided some funding for the new security measures, an additional $222,635 in taxpayer money must be procured from the district’s general fund.
“I am glad that the Texas Legislature is addressing and taking school safety serious,” Superintendent David Vinson said regarding these costs. “But serious means taking care of it and we need to have it fully funded.”
Despite these financial concerns, Wylie ISD has benefitted from its quick action to secure a contract with the private security firm since many other districts are currently scrambling to do so before the state’s September 1 deadline.
“First of all Wylie was superb. They were so proactive with everything they did,” said Charlies Hollis, L&P Global Security’s director of operations, according to WFAA.
According to Hollis, the firm hires ex-military and retired police officers.
“Personally, I think the ones we’ve hand-picked are going to be superb,” Hollis said. “The ones we have I have no doubt are going to be there for the long haul and they are going to be very diligent at their workload.”
Allen ISD also has a contract with L&P Global Security for 17 guards this school term.
Brian Kelly, Wylie ISD’s director of safety and security, expressed his optimism about how the district has boosted existing protocols ahead of the new school term starting on August 10.
“Hopefully, it’s a reassurance to parents that we are doing everything we can to provide a safe environment for the kids to come back to school,” Kelly said, according to WFAA.