Metal detectors the answer in U-46?

Elgin High School senior Zoe Marszalek knows her school uses hand-held metal detectors to find weapons, even cell phones, on students.

Still, in four years, Marszalek has never once been "wanded."

"A lot of my friends haven't ever had it done to them, either," she said this week.

Unlike Chicago Public Schools, where a majority of high schools feature walk-through metal detectors, Elgin High officials use a portable wand twice a month to check randomly selected classrooms.

Elgin Area School District U-46 safety procedures now are being inspected after a 16-year-old student was accused Friday of using a steak knife brought from home to attack teacher Carolyn Gilbert.

Metal detectors, often one of the first suggestions to arise after a violent event at a school, may not be the solution, district safety coordinator John Heiderscheidt said Tuesday.

"Metal detectors at every entrance is a decision that can't be made in just one moment," he said.

The Illinois State Board of Education does not keep data on the use of metal detectors in schools, officials said.

Even without that data, metal detectors in suburban schools appear to be more of an exception than a rule.

Sherry Anderson, a spokeswoman for DuPage High School District 88, said metal detectors and wanding "are not items of discussion as part of our safety and security measures."

The district relies on surveillance cameras and a visitor check-in policy at a designated entrance.

"This has really worked for us," Anderson said. "Items like metal detectors aren't foolproof."

Maine Township High School District 207 Superintendent Joel Morris said the district revamped safety policies for its three high schools this year, but metal detectors were never considered.

District 207's new system identifies at-risk or alienated students and attempts to intervene with them early on. Security cameras are being installed in each high school, Morris said.

Community Unit District 300 has installed security cameras in schools, trained teachers in lockdown procedures and gang-related issues and launched a school climate committee that focuses on discipline and safety.

Wanding and metal detectors have not been seriously entertained, Superintendent Ken Arndt said.

"That has proven to not be 100-percent effective," he said. "I think it sometimes provides a false sense of security."

At Elgin High, more than 20 cameras monitor areas on the inside and outside of the school. None, however, are positioned in classrooms, Heiderscheidt said.

The district has a rapid notification system to inform parents and staff members of incidents and trains its staff in crisis management and lockdown training each year.

After a violent event occurs, parents understandably look to school officials for some "guarantee" it will not happen again, said Ken Trump, president of Cleveland-based National School Safety and Security Services.

"This type of climate can put a great deal of pressure on (district officials) to produce an almost knee-jerk reaction."

Installing metal detectors in schools raises a number of difficult issues -- besides the cost of the machines, maintenance and the people you need to run them, Trump said.

"How early do you bring students in to get them through the detectors? Is the security staffing cost feasible?" Trump asked. "When you come to plays and (sporting events), are you going to run detectors then?"

While installing security equipment is a component of a safe school, "it's only as good as the human element behind it," Trump said.

The first and best line of defense is a well-trained staff, he said.

A U-46 committee plans to again scrutinize the district's safety procedures in the coming months, Heiderscheidt said.

Safety: Cameras, visitor passes preferred