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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesA 2013 survey of architects, engineers, and construction professionals found that school security was a major concern for many districts, but also showed why there is no single upgrade that solves it. The Building Design + Construction (BD+C) findings point to school officials as the principal decision-makers, poor entryways and unsecured exits as common weaknesses, and a layered strategy that combines design, procedures, technology, training, and phased investment.
The evidence is historical: BD+C fielded the survey November 18–25, 2013, and published its report January 14, 2014. It describes what participating AEC professionals observed in their district work, not current national conditions or present-day code requirements.
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What the BD+C survey measured
BD+C emailed 9,929 current subscribers involved in K–12 school design and construction and received 462 usable responses. The publication reported a 4.45% margin of error at the 95% confidence level. Respondents were primarily architects, with engineers and construction professionals making up most of the remainder.
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| Respondent role | Share of usable responses |
|---|---|
| Architects | 58.2% |
| Engineers | 20.8% |
| Construction professionals | 17.3% |
| Other roles | 3.7% |
Because the sample consisted of BD+C subscribers who work in school design and construction, the percentages should be read as a snapshot of professional opinion in that group. They are not a current estimate of the safety of schools nationwide. The original report is “AEC professionals weigh in on school security,” published January 14, 2014. It appeared as part of BD+C’s five-part special report on K–12 school security.
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Security ranked among districts’ leading concerns
In the survey, 61.4% of respondents said security concerns ranked among the top two or three priorities for the school districts they served. That result indicates that security was already a central planning issue for many clients in 2013, while leaving room for other priorities such as educational programming, building condition, energy performance, and budget.
Who decides on school security improvements?
School officials were identified as the main decision-makers by 62.0% of respondents. In practical terms, that places superintendents, facilities directors, principals, district administrators, and school boards at the center of setting priorities and authorizing work. A design team can propose options, explain operational consequences, and coordinate specialists, but a district’s leadership must determine what risks and disruptions it is prepared to address.
The report encourages AEC firms to involve the people who understand daily operations as well as those who understand security. A useful project group can include:
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- School principals, teachers, and support staff who understand arrival, dismissal, and supervision patterns.
- Security professionals or a qualified consultant who can assess threats and system performance.
- Local law enforcement and emergency-response partners, engaged through the district’s established channels.
- Architects, engineers, contractors, and commissioning or technology specialists who can translate goals into a workable facility.
Early coordination matters because a door, camera, intercom, or visitor-management change affects circulation, staffing, emergency response, accessibility, and fire-life-safety requirements. A decision made in isolation can create a secure-looking feature that fails during normal school use.
Why existing-school retrofits are especially difficult
New construction allows a team to plan the site, entries, circulation, utilities, and security systems together. Existing schools rarely offer that freedom. Walls, structural systems, historic features, outdated wiring, limited sightlines, and occupied classrooms constrain what can be changed without major cost or disruption.
James Gibbs, AIA, NCARB, a Connecticut architect and Certified Architectural Historian, described the strategic problem directly: “Design is so much more difficult (as in strategic) when retrofitting a quarter-century-old (or even older) facility, as most educational facilities are.” His observation is especially relevant to campuses built in phases, where additions may have produced several entrances and inconsistent hardware or communications systems.
Conditions respondents associated with retrofit work
The article lists several areas that respondents considered when improving existing schools. They are planning categories, not a universal specification:
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- Main entrances and the ability to control and observe people approaching the building.
- Door security, including locks, keying arrangements, and electronic access control.
- Cameras and identification systems that support monitoring and investigation.
- Visitor sign-in procedures and the physical location of reception or screening.
- Internal and external communications for routine operations and emergencies.
- Lighting and visibility around entries, parking, and circulation routes.
- Intrusion detection for spaces or periods when the building is unoccupied.
A retrofit assessment should first document how the building is actually used. Drawings alone may not show which door a sports team opens at night, where parents wait during dismissal, or how a community group enters after hours. Walk-throughs at different times and interviews with staff can reveal conflicts before construction begins.
Entryways and exits were recurring weak points
Among the survey respondents, 68.0% reported poor entryway design as a school-security shortcoming. Entry design is more than the appearance of a front door. It includes approach routes, visibility from occupied spaces, reception location, the ability to direct visitors to one controlled point, and a clear separation between public and student circulation.
Another 59.5% identified open exit doors as a shortcoming. Exit doors must remain available for evacuation under applicable fire and life-safety rules, so a security project cannot simply lock every door. The design challenge is to control unauthorized entry while preserving compliant egress, providing accessible routes, and allowing staff to understand the status of each opening.
For a project team, that means coordinating door hardware, access-control programming, alarm interfaces, signage, and staff procedures. A device that is technically capable but poorly understood can be propped open, bypassed, or ignored. Testing should include normal arrival, lunch periods, deliveries, after-school activities, emergency drills, and a loss-of-power scenario, with final requirements confirmed by the authority having jurisdiction and qualified professionals.
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Layered security: CPTED, technology, and operations
The report presents security as a combination of passive design, electronic systems, and human practices rather than as a single product. Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) uses features such as natural surveillance, territorial definition, controlled access, and maintenance to influence how people move through and perceive a place. The approach can include sightlines, glazing, landscaping that does not create hiding places, lighting, and clearly defined public paths.
CPTED was not universally familiar among respondents. In the survey, 38.1% said they used CPTED in school projects, 19.7% reported rare use, and 33.8% said they were not familiar with it. These figures describe the 2013 respondent group; they do not measure current professional practice.
Electronic systems add another layer. The survey found that 51.3% of respondents reported employing intrusion detection and 50.6% reported using identification systems. Depending on the project, identification can involve badges, intercom verification, visitor credentials, or other controlled processes. Intrusion detection may monitor doors, windows, or interior zones when they should be secure. The article does not identify specific products, performance ratings, or current standards, so a district must establish those details through a current design and procurement process.
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How the layers reinforce one another
- Passive measures: Make legitimate routes obvious, improve visibility, define public and staff areas, and reduce opportunities for concealment.
- Controlled access: Use a limited, observable entry during the school day and manage other doors according to the building’s schedule.
- Detection and identification: Provide information about a forced opening or an unknown visitor so staff can respond according to policy.
- Procedures and supervision: Ensure that people know who checks visitors, who responds to alerts, and who maintains equipment.
No layer is infallible. Dale Junttila, president of Finnwood, captured that limitation: “We can certainly make school facilities more secure, but we can’t make them perfect.”
Multiple uses complicate access planning
Schools are often more than weekday instructional buildings. Clubs, sports, concerts, religious gatherings, and community events can bring unfamiliar users to the campus at night or on weekends. A door arrangement that works during class may be impractical when a gym is open while classrooms remain locked.
Designers and districts should map each recurring use and define its access pattern:
- List the groups that use the building, the spaces they need, and the times they arrive.
- Identify which entrance each group should use and where supervision or reception will occur.
- Separate public event circulation from student and staff areas wherever the building permits.
- Set credential, key, or escort rules for employees, contractors, volunteers, and visitors.
- Confirm how doors, alarms, cameras, and communications are returned to the normal school-day configuration.
This operational map can expose the need for scheduling software, additional staffing, signage, or a hardware change. It also prevents a common retrofit error: securing one entrance while leaving routine users dependent on an unmonitored side or rear door.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Budget limits make phasing part of the security strategy
Security work competes with roofs, heating and cooling, accessibility, classroom upgrades, and other capital needs. The report repeatedly returns to budget constraints and presents phasing as a way to address urgent weaknesses first while spreading other work over time.
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A practical sequencing model
- Document and stabilize: Correct failed hardware, doors that do not latch, missing keys, unreliable communications, and procedures that staff cannot follow.
- Improve the primary entry: Clarify the visitor route, reception position, visibility, identification process, and after-hours configuration.
- Extend control to secondary doors: Address openings used by students, staff, deliveries, athletics, and community groups, coordinating with egress requirements.
- Add or integrate detection and identification: Connect systems to a response procedure and verify that alerts reach the people responsible for acting.
- Train, test, and maintain: Exercise normal and emergency scenarios, document results, and budget for recurring inspection, credential management, and replacement.
The sequence will vary by campus. A current assessment should determine which deficiencies are life-safety, operational, or security priorities and how construction can be scheduled around occupied spaces.
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Keeping schools welcoming while improving control
Security features can change how a school feels. Heavy barriers, confusing checkpoints, or fortress-like façades may discourage families and conflict with a building’s role as a community resource. John W. Bollinger, PE, mechanical engineer and project manager for Boulder Valley School District, described the design tension this way: “It’s a fine line to walk between having a school be a welcoming place and having it look like a prison.”
A welcoming approach does not mean leaving access unmanaged. It can mean making the intended entrance easy to find, using transparent reception areas, integrating security equipment into the architecture, providing clear wayfinding, and preserving daylight and visibility. The right balance depends on the school’s educational mission, neighborhood context, event schedule, and the district’s policies.
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Procedures, training, and system upkeep are essential
Hardware and software only work when people use them correctly and the district maintains them. Alan Brockbank, CPP, CSS, president of B-Secure Consulting, emphasized the operational side: “Most schools can benefit from developing and enforcing security-related procedures, from security awareness training for staff, faculty, administrators, bus drivers, students, parents, and community members, and from assessing their current systems to ensure they are working properly.”
That advice covers more than a one-time orientation. Districts should assign responsibility for visitor processing, lost credentials, door alarms, camera review, emergency communications, and vendor support. Training should match each person’s role and be refreshed when procedures, staffing, or building layouts change. Periodic tests should verify that doors latch, alarms report, cameras cover intended areas, and messages reach the right recipients.
What this historical report does—and does not—establish
The BD+C article is useful for understanding how AEC professionals framed school-security decisions in 2013. It identifies recurring planning issues: decision ownership, retrofit complexity, entry and exit conditions, layered measures, varied building uses, limited budgets, and the need to preserve a welcoming environment.
It does not provide a current security assessment, a model code, a mandated equipment list, a tested product comparison, or a guarantee that any intervention will prevent an incident. Codes, accessibility rules, fire and life-safety requirements, privacy obligations, technology capabilities, and district policies change over time and by jurisdiction. Before construction or procurement, verify the applicable requirements with the authority having jurisdiction, the district’s legal and risk-management advisers, and qualified security, design, and engineering professionals.
A decision framework for an AEC project team
For a district planning work today, the report’s lessons can be translated into a disciplined process:
- Establish the decision group: Include district leadership, building users, facilities staff, emergency partners, and relevant specialists.
- Map people and movement: Record daily arrivals, deliveries, dismissal, extracurricular activities, and community use.
- Assess the existing condition: Walk the campus, review door and communications performance, and document procedural gaps as well as physical defects.
- Set objectives: Define what must be controlled, observed, detected, communicated, and maintained, while preserving compliant egress and accessibility.
- Compare alternatives: Evaluate passive design, access control, detection, identification, staffing, training, and maintenance together rather than selecting a device in isolation.
- Plan phases and funding: Prioritize urgent deficiencies, identify dependencies, and set a schedule that minimizes disruption to instruction.
- Commission and sustain: Test the completed work in realistic operating modes, train users, assign ownership, and fund ongoing maintenance.
The central message is not that one technology or one architectural gesture can secure a school. It is that effective school security is a coordinated, evolving part of facility planning—one that must fit the district’s operations, budget, building stock, and obligation to remain an open and supportive place for students and the community.
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