PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — Starting Monday, metal detectors will start screening thousands of students at four more Palm Beach County high schools, bringing the total number of schools with the security devices to eight.
Boynton Beach Community High School, Park Vista Community High School, Forest Hill Community High School, and Palm Beach Central High School are the next four schools that now have metal detectors.
The schools received the equipment last week and began testing the machines, with Monday being the official rollout.
WATCH: Chopper 5 video of Monday's rollout of metal detectors
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The bigger goal is to have metal detectors at all 24 Palm Beach County high schools before classes let out for summer break. There are still 16 schools that need to be equipped with the technology.
The school year started with metal detectors at four schools: Seminole Ridge Community High School, Palm Beach Lakes Community High School, John I. Leonard High School, and Palm Beach Gardens Community High School.
Superintendent Mike Burke announced in October the School District of Palm Beach County would move forward with getting the devices for all high schools.
In an exclusive interview with WPTV education reporter Stephanie Susskind, Chief Sarah Mooney of the School District of Palm Beach County's Police Department said no weapons have been found at the schools using metal detectors.
"It's been a learning curve for everybody. But I think the students have been really responsive to it and I don't think its negatively impacted anybody since the rollout of this," Mooney said. "This second phase of this project, it's going to be gradual that we have the support for each of the campuses to facilitate changing their plans if they need to."
After this group of schools start implementing metal detectors, the school district will start training at another group of schools.
WPTV is working to learn which high schools could be next.
"Unfortunately, I think it’s our new normal," parent Whitney Cherner said. "It’s just sad that this is what life is like for our kids, which is probably why we see so much anxiety in our young people."
As WPTV Chopper 5 captured video of Park Vista High School students going through metal detectors Monday morning, Cherner said there wasn't too much concern in her house.
"Mostly it’s just about the procedure that it’s taking a little longer. But there’s no negative feelings or resistance toward it," Cherner said.
This is this second phase of Palm Beach County's metal detector rollout.
"It was a lot to absorb because you don't think something can happen in your school, in your child's school. But I understand why the school district is doing it," parent Jason Soffer said.
For Soffer, the biggest thing for his family was acceptance.
"He's a little frustrated it's going to slow things down. And there's only two entrances to the school. So it's going to invariably create some lateness and some tardies. But he's taking it seriously," Soffer said.
The equipment can move students through every half-second. They do have to remove items from their backpacks like laptops, three-ring binders, and some water bottles and umbrellas.
"I would really love to hear from the district themselves on why they thought metal detectors were the solution," parent Ashley Goldstein said.
Goldstein is concerned about how students with special needs or mental health issues will be treated waiting in the inevitable lines, and also worries about starting school on time.
"We're making it very difficult for students to get to class. We're disrupting the learning environment. And we're doing it all under the disguise of student safety when metal detectors don't even provide that," Goldstein said.
Parents told WPTV education reporter Stephanie Susskind their kids' reactions to day one ranged from "It was fine" to "It was weird." They know it will take time to get adjusted.
School police said they'll continue to alternate with training and implementing the metal detectors at additional high schools until they all have the devices before the end of the school year.
