As students and parents prepare to start the 2024-2025 school year, Palm Beach County School District officials outlined new metal detectors and safety protocols, improved teacher retention and transportation enhancements 鈥� but also struggling student attendance.
Here are updates to some of the top, county-wide priorities, announced Friday for the 10th largest school district in the country ahead of the first day of school on Aug. 12.
New vape detecting pilot program
School Police Chief, Sarah Mooney, on Friday announced a new pilot program this year that aims to reduce vaping on campuses. The device works like a smoke detector and notifies school administrators.
Vaping is an electronic, battery-powered smoking device 鈥� most commonly referred to as e-cigarettes 鈥� which contains nicotine or other recreational drugs. The product is not allowed on school premises and violates school conduct codes.
Officials plan to install the device in various places on select campuses. No word on which district school will join the program, but officials say safety and security is also about health.
"That's just to kind of reduce the incidences of vaping on our campuses in order to try to improve the health and wellness of our students,鈥� Mooney added.
Metal detectors are ready to go
Following a successful pilot program last year, students will walk through metal detectors in all high schools in Palm Beach County. Last year, several schools in the A-rated district participated in the pilot program after a gradual rollout.
鈥淚t was a big success right off the bat,鈥� said School Police Chief Sarah Mooney.
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Mooney said different campuses require their own technical adjustments to make the process of scanning people efficient. "We think we've got that drilled down to where it's gonna be smooth on Monday," she said. "And every one of our high schools will have the metal detectors up and running.鈥�
And that includes a security officer on every campus and updates to cameras and card access readers.
Too many students missing classes
Superintendent Michael Burke is urging parents to help improve poor student attendance, what he refers to as 鈥渟ome bad habits鈥� that stem from the early stages of the pandemic.
The district is reporting that nearly 40% of students countywide have missed 11 days or more of school last year.
鈥淎nd that is way too much. And every day of school counts,鈥� Burke said.
He said the school district is ramping up existing protocols in place that notify parents of their absent child. And that includes developing an awareness campaign with Children's Services Council of Palm Beach County, the county鈥檚 social service agency for families and children.
Teacher retention has improved
Thanks to strong recruitment efforts, the district saw improvements to teacher retention.
"We are in the best position we've been in a few years,鈥� Superintendent Burke said.
Despite the difficulty of teaching during the pandemic, the district's teacher vacancy rate hovers just over 2%, much lower than the 4% from two years ago, he said.
Improved public school transportation
The low vacancy rate doesn鈥檛 stop at teachers, said Chief Operating Officer Joseph Sanches.
Sanches said the district has more than 60 driver vacancies, down from 130 last year. But more can be done.
"And we have 25 who are in various stages of the process of being trained and onboarded. So we're in good shape, better shape, much better shape than last year,鈥� Sanches said.
The school district is offering sign-on and referral bonuses to attract bus drivers: $5,000 bonus with a CDL driver, $2,500 without.
Superintendent Michael Burke urges parents to have patience as new bus drivers adjust to their routes in the first couple of weeks of school.
Last year, the school district launched a pilot program , a GPS-enabled, bus tracking app at select schools, which sends notifications to parents.
But to reduce overcrowding on the buses, Sanches is encouraging all parents and students in the school district to , which 鈥渢ells you where your bus stop is and when the bus is going to be there to pick you up and also when it drops you off in the afternoon,鈥� he said.
