WILLIS, Texas – After weeks of bag searches, metal detector screenings and a new clear backpack requirement at Willis High School, Willis ISD is moving forward with another security change.
The Willis ISD Board of Trustees voted 5-0 Thursday morning to approve the purchase of 15 new Xtract One weapons detection units.
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The vote comes after two guns were found inside students’ backpacks at Willis High School this school year, along with several other incidents involving threats, concerning social media images and comments about a bomb.
The new technology is designed to change how students are screened when they arrive at school.
Instead of stopping every student to manually search a bag, district leaders say students will be able to walk through the system at a normal pace while carrying their backpacks.
What did the board approve?
Willis ISD is purchasing 15 Xtract One screening units.
The district’s presentation includes two types of systems: 11 Gateway units and four SmartGateway units.
District leaders said the equipment gives Willis ISD flexibility because the units are movable and do not have to stay permanently at one location.
The Gateway system is designed for entrances where students are carrying backpacks and other everyday items.
The SmartGateway units are intended for locations handling larger crowds, including sporting events and other district activities.
The district discussed placing the equipment at locations including Willis High School, middle school campuses, the stadium and the performing arts center.
How will the new screeners work?
For students, one of the biggest differences should be what happens when they walk through the door.
Willis High students have recently had their backpacks manually searched while entering school.
With the Xtract One Gateway system, the district says students will be able to keep their backpacks with them and walk through the screening area at a normal pace.
The technology screens the person and their belongings for potential threats.
Xtract One says its Gateway technology is designed to distinguish potential weapons from common items people carry every day, including laptops, phones, binders and water bottles.
That distinction matters inside a school, where hundreds of students could be walking into the building carrying electronics and school supplies at roughly the same time.
Why does Willis ISD say this is different from a traditional metal detector?
The goal is to reduce the number of students who have to stop for a secondary search.
District leaders told board members that everyday items students carry can create additional work during the current screening process.
The new system is designed to allow students who do not trigger a threat alert to continue walking.
If the system identifies a potential threat, staff would then conduct additional screening.
Willis ISD also expects the technology to reduce the number of employees needed to operate screening stations because fewer students should require secondary checks.
Why 15 screeners?
Willis ISD is looking beyond one entrance at Willis High School.
The district approved 15 units that can be deployed at different district locations.
Eleven are Gateway units, while four are SmartGateway systems intended for locations and events handling larger crowds.
During the presentation, district leaders discussed distributing the equipment among Willis High School, middle schools and other district facilities.
The ability to move the equipment also means Willis ISD would be able to use screeners for events where large numbers of students, parents and visitors are expected.
Why is Willis ISD making this change now?
The decision follows a string of safety concerns at Willis High School since August.
The first loaded gun was discovered Aug. 26.
A campus administrator was searching a student suspected of vaping when a loaded gun was found inside the student’s backpack.
The following day, another student was taken into custody after the district said the student threatened to shoot classmates. Administrators said the student later claimed the comment was a joke.
On Aug. 31, the district investigated concerning images circulating online. School officials said there was no direct threat associated with those images.
Then, on Sept. 21, administrators received another report about a gun inside a student’s backpack.
The school was placed on hold while administrators investigated.
A gun was found, turned over to a school resource officer and the student was taken into custody.
It was the second gun brought onto Willis High School during the school year.
The second gun changed how students entered school
By the following morning, getting into Willis High looked different.
Every student was required to pass through a metal detector and have their backpack searched before entering the building.
Some students told KPRC 2 the process caused delays getting into school.
That same morning brought another safety concern.
Two students were taken into custody in separate incidents after making comments about having a bomb, according to school officials.
Both students reportedly said they were joking. No explosive device was reported.
Willis High has since added another requirement.
Beginning Sept. 28, students were required to use clear backpacks.
The district says the clear backpack policy helps staff and officers see what students bring into the building while helping students move through entry points faster.
What happens to clear backpacks and other security measures?
The new weapons detection systems are another part of a larger security operation already in place across Willis ISD.
The district says every campus has an armed security officer during regular school hours.
Willis ISD also partners with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office for school resource officers.
Campuses have secured entry vestibules, locked exterior and classroom doors, surveillance systems and other security procedures.
Willis High’s clear backpack requirement was introduced following the recent incidents.
The district has said clear bags are also required at district sporting events and other district events.
District leaders say school safety requires more than equipment
Thursday’s discussion also went beyond the 15 machines.
District leaders talked about the number of employees involved in keeping campuses secure, including administrators, law enforcement, custodians, counselors and other staff members.
They also discussed the financial side of adding security measures.
District officials told board members some safety measures are not fully funded by the state, requiring Willis ISD to find other ways to pay for them.
School leaders described the district and Willis community as taking school safety seriously and said Willis ISD has worked to find ways to put additional measures in place.
What happens next?
With the board’s 5-0 approval, the focus now turns to getting the new equipment into schools and other district facilities.
The purchase includes the screening units along with tablets, maintenance, training and installation.
Willis ISD has also been working on plans to demonstrate the new screeners and show how students would move through them.
KPRC 2 is continuing to follow when the equipment will begin operating and what the transition will look like for students who have already experienced several security changes since the school year began.
We want to hear from you
Parents, students and teachers have watched security at Willis High change quickly this school year.
Students have gone through metal detectors and bag searches. Clear backpacks are now required. Soon, new weapons detection technology will become another part of that process.
If your child attends Willis ISD, do these changes make you feel safer?
And if your child has already gone through the new security process at Willis High, we want to know what their experience has been.
Share your experience with KPRC 2 and tell us what questions you still have about the new weapons screeners.
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