GREEN BAY, Wis. (WFRV) – One local school district is spending more than a million dollars to ensure the safety of their students and staff. The district says safety is its top priority. 

“This came about based on a few incidents that have happened this year, along with our staff requesting additional support with student behavior,” said Josh Patchak, Chief Operations Officer of Green Bay Area Public Schools. 

The Green Bay Area Public School District is spending $1.8 million to upgrade school security. The school district says the new security system will keep students out of harm’s way and provide peace of mind for parents. 

“It is ultimately for students and staff safety that the system does allow us to indicate that there is a situation in school that requires people to stay in place,” said Patchak. 

The district currently uses a public announcement system to notify students and staff of danger on school grounds. Patchak says if students and staff cannot hear the system, they may be unaware of potential dangers. 

“The issue with that is first of all we have def and hard of hearing staff and students, but we also have areas of the building that are not covered by the P.A. System, so there’s no P.A. System in the bathroom, if you’re in gym class you’re not going to be able to hear it, if you’re in band class you’re not going to be able to hear it,” added Patchak.

Patchak also says the security upgrade will allow every student and staff member to be cautious no matter their location. Board members voted 6 to 1 for the new system. 

“The system we’re putting in is going to have strobes that can flash in 7 different colors so then we can train our staff and our students that hey when this strobe is going off and it’s green that means that there’s a tornado in the area for example,” stated Patchak. 

The new system is expected to be ready for use by next school year.