Letter to the editor — Reactionary solutions won’t boost school safety

Opinion

We do not need metal detectors in our schools.

This idea suggested by Brandon School Division trustee candidate Henry Sieklicki may give the illusion of safety, but in practice it is costly security theatre that fails to address the real issues facing students and families. The initial capital costs of purchasing detector lanes, along with the required electrical and communication infrastructure, alarms and staffing, would already run north of $1 million.

Our kids deserve more than checkpoints. They deserve care, respect, and opportunity to be part of community.

Even if detectors were placed only at single entrances and operated during morning arrivals, the ongoing cost would be estimated at $6,000 to $8,000 per day to have the staffing required to render the detectors effective. That’s something that could climb to more than $2 million every year, and well over $10 million across the next five years, for what experts would call sub-standard screening. And what for? That is the kind of system that could be bypassed if someone with ill intent just waited until 10 a.m., when security staff have left.

Until you’re ready to remove every paintbrush, metal ruler, guitar string and piece of sporting equipment from the facility, you haven’t really won the theoretical battle on “weapons.” And … you haven’t taken any bullies out of the classroom.

We have far more instances of self-harm and even suicide than we do of violence among young people in our communities. Bullying, intentional exclusion and other toxic behaviours cause damage on a daily basis.

Now ask yourself: what could $10 million accomplish if invested in young people directly? With that kind of funding, we could expand mental health supports, increase access to counsellors, and create spaces where students can feel safe sharing what they are experiencing. We could empower schools to have more readily available staffing for students in crisis. We could provide more programming that builds resilience, leadership and life skills. We could strengthen partnerships with families, ensuring that support reaches beyond the classroom and into the community. Every one of these investments would pay dividends in healthier, more confident and more respectful young adults.

Metal detectors do not nurture a student’s ability to cope with challenges, build healthy relationships or resolve conflict peacefully. They send the opposite message: that schools are inherently unsafe, that weapons are an everyday threat and that we should expect fear as part of the learning environment. That isn’t the school culture I want for my children, or for anyone else’s.

We also need to look honestly at the facts. One incident, while concerning, does not define a community. In our division we have very, very few incidents of this kind. Meanwhile, there are literally hundreds of thousands of trips to and from school every single school year in Brandon that begin and end without harm. To ignore that reality is to paint our schools as dangerous places when they are not.

I speak not only as a parent with a student attending school in our community, but also as someone who has friends in teaching and administration. These are people who dedicate their lives to students. They know what it takes to create safe, welcoming environments, and I trust their understanding far more than a candidate offering reactionary solutions from the outside.

I don’t want my child walking into a building every morning that greets them with suspicion. Parents lose sleep over enough things already. This should not be one of them. Remember that no single measure is going to guarantee safety, but prevention and support are actually things that reduce risk and improve the quality of life for everyone in our community.

We need leadership that invests in the whole child and the whole family. Leadership that recognizes true safety comes from healthy relationships, strong communities, and early support systems. Metal detectors may satisfy a desire to “do something,” but they don’t solve the problems that truly matter.

Ten million dollars could buy fear and false security, or it could transform lives. As a parent, the choice is obvious.

JAMES CHAMBERS

Brandon