TAMPA, Fla. — The presence of law enforcement at Hillsborough County Public Schools was heightened on Wednesday, authorities said, after officials reported that 19 children and two teachers were killed in a mass shooting at a Texas elementary school on Tuesday.
Leaders from Hillsborough County Public Schools, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office and Tampa Police held a joint press conference to discuss school safety following the tragedy in Texas.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office and Tampa police worked together to ensure more patrols at schools on Wednesday.
“Obviously I think anyone that sent their children to school today was pretty stressed out,” Chief Mary O’Connor said.
Superintendent Addison Davis said it's extremely sad to see what has transpired within the past 24 hours.
“This type of behavior has no place in schools,” he said.
Davis said the district made several safety improvements after the 2018 Parkland school shooting including creating single points of entry and amping up surveillance systems.
“It is no longer in Hillsborough county where you can walk into a school without being buzzed in to get on properly," Davis added.
Despite these changes, Davis says the discussions about how to improve even more will not stop.
“We have to have a continuous improvement mindset,” he explained.
Sheriff Chad Chronister said the safety improvements that have been made since Parkland are immense.
“We are light years ahead of a lot of other counties and a lot of other jurisdictions," Chronister said.
Along with looking at schools themselves, leaders are also continuing to prioritize mental health resources. They want to make sure students and faculty have a safe place to turn to if they are in need.
“Something we talk about almost on a daily basis is having more mental health resources," Chronister added.