Tony Pierantozzi, Nahant’s Superintendent of Schools, has provided an update on the progress on the multiple security upgrades at the Johnson Elementary School, as well as the infrastructure and protocol.
Last year, the school acquired a $50,000 grant from the state to fund the improvements. Pierantozzi expressed gratitude to State Rep. Peter Capano and State Sen. Brendan Crighton for their roles in securing the necessary assets.
Pierantozzi said this week that the implementation of a security film on windows and doors throughout the building was one important project recently completed. Three police officers from the Northeastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council visited the school to recommend where the film should be installed.
“The material is a sturdy thin plastic that if someone tries to break into one of the reachable doors or windows, or shoots a gun and the bullet goes through… the difference this film makes is it’s glued to the inside of the glass, and the edge of the film is glued to the frame,” Pierantozzi explained. “If a bullet goes through it the glass breaks but it doesn’t fall out.”
He added that to penetrate the barrier, the entirety of the window would have to be broken from the frame. The goal is to give the Nahant Police time to respond to the potential threat.
The school also acquired four new security cameras that have been installed in exterior locations where had been none.
Safety bollards were installed in front of the school’s Flash Road entrance, with the goal of protecting the school community from being struck by a vehicle.
In terms of protocol, staff members were given new emergency flipcharts, which are manuals that contain instructions for numerous scenarios.
Pierantozzi said lock mechanisms on all exterior doors have been changed so that they lock from the outside automatically.
“It’s a safety precaution that, basically, someone can’t forget to re-lock a door,” Pierantozzi said.
Another upgrade to the school is the acquisition of 220 modern chairs that are used for events, in the cafeteria, and in other spaces around the school.
Johnson School Principal Kevin Andrews thanked Essex Tech in Danvers for providing the chairs, which replace the approximately 150 folding chairs that had been in use for more than two decades.
