TA23-S O-Pages - Flipbook - Page 17
Of Note
Texas Architects
Advocate for School
Safety and Security
by Gabriella Bermea, AIA, NOMA
More than a year ago, Texas families were forced
to face the unimaginable. Nineteen defenseless
third- and fourth-grade students and two educators were brutally murdered in the violent shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. This
event occurred four years after the 2018 tragedy
at Santa Fe High School in Santa Fe, Texas, after
which school safety was made an emergency item
during the 86th legislative session in 2019. The
Texas Society of Architects stepped into that
discussion by creating a School Safety Subcommittee, consisting of representatives from some
of the state’s top education design 昀椀rms, to assist
in 昀椀nding ways to improve school safety and to
become a resource to legislators.
In 2019, the Texas Legislature passed comprehensive school safety and mental health legislation
to make schools safer for students, educators, and
sta昀昀. Following the 88th legislative session held
this year, Texas legislators have reacted by implementing comprehensive school safety measures
that include creating a safety and security department within the Texas Education Agency (TEA),
establishing regional safety teams, requiring an
armed person at every school district or open
enrollment charter, and more. As legislators work
to protect families through policy, architects and
designers aid the e昀昀ort by implementing researchbased design strategies to create safer and more
secure learning environments.
Protecting the health, safety, and welfare of the
public is vital to the profession of architecture. Since
its establishment, the School Safety Subcommittee
has created multiple documents with the purpose of
incorporating language from them into the State’s
overall dialogue and response. The subcommittee’s
o昀케cial position can be found at the TxA website.
Abby Hiles, AIA, associate principal with BRW
Architects and chair of the School Safety Subcommittee notes: “The physical environment is only
one layer, along with so many other factors, that
must be taken into consideration when we discuss
school security. Within the physical environment,
there are also multiple layers of site, building, and
technology that can be considered for deterrence
and protection. As the rules proposed by the
TEA [Texas Education Agency] look to address a
standard for physical security layers, architects are
an important voice in understanding the impact of
these elements on the physical environment.”
The subcommittee has de昀椀ned several fundamental truths: First, needs di昀昀er by community, so
responses must be determined locally. Second, the
broadest possible community input is critical when
those decisions are being made. And third, whatever choices are made, additional resources will be
required for adaptability for future needs. “A basic
need for all human beings is to feel safe,” says
Lauren Brown, AIA, principal at VLK Architects
and chair-elect of the School Safety Subcommittee. “Our most vulnerable are our children who
depend on and trust that we, as their guardians,
are providing a safe environment without intellectual and physical barriers to grow and learn.
Brown elaborates: “Our essential charge
as architects lies with the health, safety, and
welfare of building occupants. That overarching
responsibility allows the architect’s lens to focus
and implement passive design solutions from
thoroughly researched CPTED [Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design] principles.
The layering of safety building design practices
and elevated technologies can create the security
optics that teachers and even our youngest of
learners need within a building. I am encouraged
by some school districts’ supplementing the basic
safety o昀昀erings by openly discussing and implementing mental health solutions.” Brown also
notes that any new TEA requirements should
be fully funded by the state so that the full cost
burden of equitably implementing safety measures does not become a district funding issue.
In 2018, AIA’s Committee on Education held
a summit and subsequently published a report on
the design of safe, secure, and welcoming learning
environments. The report’s 昀椀ndings concluded that
the design of secure and welcoming educational
environments is a product of combining the interventional strategies of CPTED with curative strategies that contribute to positive mental health and
a sense of community and culture of care. Diego
Barrera, AIA, a design director at WRA Architects
and the 2023 vice-chair of the AIA Committee on
Education, served as a moderator for the CPTED
and Code Enforcement working group. Barrera
comments: “Through the 2018 e昀昀orts, one of
our primary goals was to have all the voices in the
room. Architects, policymakers, students, educators, school administrators, law enforcement and
building code o昀케cials, mental health experts, and
more were brought to the table…. Buildings alone
cannot solve gun violence. Our role as architects is
to create spaces that engage students. Our designs
must balance creating welcoming environments
that celebrate students while using all the tools and
technology available to keep students safe.”
The Texas Society of Architects included the
following as a part of the 2023 legislative agenda
regarding school safety: “Through our ongoing
work to promote best practice standards for the
design and construction of school facilities, we are
committed to providing the best guidance possible
on how school districts and charter schools might
improve school safety in existing facilities and in
the design of new facilities, while maintaining
open and positive learning environments.”
The 88th legislature’s response to safety and
security in schools is House Bill 3, authored by
Representative Dustin Burrows (R–Lubbock). It
was signed into law by the governor on June 14
and will be e昀昀ective September 1, 2023. This
bill requires that every school district and open
enrollment charter in the state establish an active
shooter protocol and that the Texas School Safety
Center collectively gathers every 昀椀ve years to
ensure that best practices are being followed. In
addition, every school district will receive $15,000
per campus, plus a safety and security funding
allotment equivalent to $10 per student, based on
daily average attendance, toward further hardening their campuses. Lawmakers have allocated
$1.1 billion to the TEA for administering school
safety grants to be distributed among the over
1,000 school districts in the state. TxA’s advocacy
and input has ensured that safety and security
requirements for school facilities was predicated
on best practices and that no new liability or
compliance traps were created for the profession.
There is no one-size-昀椀ts-all solution to school
safety. To ensure the safety and well-being of
students, school design must remain dynamic,
responsive, and adaptable to the evolving needs
of the community. Architects are champions of
innovation and are a critical voice in the creation
of e昀昀ective and productive learning environments. Both architects and educators have the
responsibility to be at the table with policymakers
to promote positive, community-centric experiences, while prioritizing student health and safety
Gabriella Bermea, AIA, NOMA, is an associate and
design architect with VLK Architects; chair of the
TxA Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee; and
communications director for the Young Architects
Forum.
9/10 2023
Texas Architect 15