HARTLEY COUNTY, Texas (KAMR/KCIT) – According to the Hartley County Sheriff’s Office in a Friday announcement, the Hartley Independent School District will have a full-time deputy inside the school during the upcoming year.
“I would like to thank both the HISD Board and the Hartley County Commissioners. Both see the importance of providing this type of security in our school and the protection of the students,” said Hartley County Sheriff Chanze Fowler, “I also want to express my profound gratitude to the forward-thinking of HISD and for stepping out in front of this nationwide problem concerning school security. We look forward to this new joint venture between the HISD and the Hartley County Sheriff’s Office.”
This comes after the school shooting in Uvalde that led to the deaths of 21 people drew national attention and spurred increased efforts from citizens and lawmakers to tackle issues such as guns, mental health and school security.
Apart from local efforts such as Hartley County’s added deputy to the school grounds, the Texas Education Agency released a list of mandated security initiatives for each local education agency to complete by Sept. 1 in an effort to shore up school safety for the new year.