LEXINGTON, Ky. — School leaders in the Fayette County Public Schools are discussing ways to make improvements to school safety.

What You Need To Know

  •  Fayette County Public schools developed a safety investment plan in 2018 following school shootings in Marshal County, Ky. and Parkland, Fla.

  •  District will collect feedback from students, parents and staff on how to moderized the plan for 2023

  •  74 mental health professionals have been hired since 2018

  • Students, staff and families will be given a survey

In 2018, FCPS developed its Ten Point Safety Investment Plan, following a school shooting in Marshal County and the Parkland School shooting in Florida.

Now, five years, a pandemic and many more school shootings later, the district is reevaluating its 2018 plan.

On Thursday, the FCPS District Safety Advisory Council held its first of three community meetings where leaders updated the public on the progress and implementation of the 2018 plan. Over the next few months, the district plans on updating the plan to be in line with 2023.

Superintendent Dr. Demetrus Liggins said the goal of the council is a simple one: “Make recommendations to help students feel safe at home, at school and in our community.”

Liggins said that’s why he’s reconvening the board for the first time in five years.

“We’re in a completely different place now than we were five years ago when this plan was completed. We’ve been through a pandemic, a racial uprising in our nation,” Liggins said.

Liggins says the district’s plan has become a national model for school safety planning. Liggins said it addresses goals in areas of security, social-emotional learning and mental health.

“In fact, since five years ago, we have hired 74 district mental health specialists to work with our children, and we have one of the lowest, if not the lowest, ratios in the nation as far as mental health to students,” Liggins said.

The safety board includes first responders, FCPS staff and the NAACP.

Rebecca Diloreto represents the NAACP and hopes to see a slowdown of officers being placed in schools. She believes the school district has met its requirement to have enough officers in schools.

“Students nor staff; not all of them feel safer having them there, they feel targeted. So we want to discuss how the 10-point plan is going to ensure that we address those concerns,” Diloreto said.

Diloreto commends FCPS for the transparency and for getting diverse input. She says doing more to prevent prejudices will also cut down on violence such as bullying that could lead to more extreme forms of violence.

“It’s an ongoing effort really to address many different types of biases that we all possess and that can lead to children being targeted or stigmatized where that’s not helpful for them and doesn’t make a safer school environment,” Diloreto said.

The first meeting was held Thursday night. The next two meetings will take place:

  • Feb. 9 at Tates Creek High School – Student panel to hear their needs, concerns, and recommendations

  • Feb. 16 at 450 Park Place – Experts’ advice on refining best practices in school safety, mental health, and juvenile justice

FCPS will also be sending out a survey to students, faculty and parents.

More information can be found on the district’s website.

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