Photo: CBS 12
School starts on Thursday in Palm Beach and many other Florida counties and safety is on the mind of all parents.
It's also on the mind of Palm Beach School District Police Chief Sarah Mooney, who is promoting the Fortify Florida app. It's where students and parents can report anything that may be suspicious, and she says that's been happening a lot.
"Not everything that they get reported on it is something that's really earth-shattering. And that's okay, it gives us the opportunity to vet the information, we would rather you report something and let us know about it, then think yeah, maybe I will maybe I won't. If you're even thinking about it, you probably should report it."
Mooney tells CBS 12 News that all Palm Beach County public schools have been upgraded over the summer, with more cameras and other safety features.
There will also be metal detectors at four high schools as part of a pilot program: John I. Leonard, Palm Beach Gardens, Palm Beach Lakes and Seminole Ridge.
"We're trying to just add layers as we go, we're doing a really good job now, I think the campuses are safe now. But you can always have another layer, we're always going to be continuing to do safety and security measures and implementing things that we think are going to make it better. Because you know, you're nothing's 100%. But the closer we can get to 100%, the better off we're going to be in the long run. So that's what we're striving for. I want the parents to know that this isn't a particular thing that we think is going to be the end all be all to everything. It's just one more piece of the puzzle to try to keep the kids safe."
School starts on Thursday.