School Board Rejects Hiring Security Guards for Elementary Schools
The board turned down Superintendent MaryEllen Elia's recommendation to hire 130 security officers until it can get a better handle on the best way to ensure the safety of public school children.
Like a lot of moms around the country, the Dec. 14 mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., stood as a wakeup call for Tampa resident Bridgitte Kramer. "I'm very concerned about the safety of my children," said Kramer, whose children attend Oak Grove Elementary School on North Armenia Avenue, Tampa. In fact, Kramer was so alarmed by the shooting, she sat through a five-hour Hillsborough County School Board meeting Tuesday, Jan. 15, with her two antsy children in tow, to find out if the board would agree to hire armed security guards for public elementary schools. It was a sacrifice Kramer willingly made for her own kids as well as all the other children in Hillsborough County schools. As president of the …
