Across the state, children went back to school again today/Monday. And in many school districts, there's an increased security presence. WNPR's Jeff Cohen reports.
It's the first day back at school and I'm in Canton -- an hour from Newtown. I came to Cherry Brook Primary School to speak to parents as they dropped their kids off. One parent cried and then apologized when I asked her to talk. That was just before I was asked to leave school property altogether, as a police cruiser pulled in.
So I went to the Collinsville section of town, where I met with Canton Schools Superintendent Kevin Case. He's got about 1,800 students in his care -- prekindergarten through grade 12. He says police cruisers like the one I saw will be standard outside Canton schools for at least this week, if not longer.
"They've always been visible in Canton. We're just now going to increase their presence -- to make everyone feel more secure."
But we're not even close to Newtown. Then again, my town of Middletown isn't close to Newtown, either. And it upped its police presence. So did other school districts, like Stonington and Hamden.
Why? For real security? For the appearance of security?
Case: It's both. For security reasons. But also to add that next level of reassurance to parents and staff members.
Cohen: Because this is a fragile day.
Case: Absolutely. It really is.
I asked him, though, whether that kind of investment is sustainable. Town budgets aren't exactly flush. He says it can be sustainable in Canton, but it may be harder in bigger cities. But everywhere there are parents and children, it will be hard for a while yet. Case is not only responsible for Canton's students. He's got high schoolers of his own.
"With teenagers, you don't always get a lot of conversation going, so it sparked some discussion. But I'm sure more thoughts will come out from my own children as well as all children with families over the next few days and weeks. Because it will take time for all of us to process the unfortunate events from Friday."
With that, Case left his office to go speak with town leaders about safety and security procedures.
For WNPR, I'm Jeff Cohen.
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Jeff Cohen started in newspapers in 2001 and joined Connecticut Public in 2010, where he worked as a reporter and fill-in host. In 2017, he was named news director. Then, in 2022, he became a senior enterprise reporter.
