UPDATE (WKOW) -- Madison school district officials are promising quick action to address parents' concerns over safety and security.
Dozens of parents and students showed up at a board meeting Monday night to tell school officials how they feel. Many of the parents have students at LaFollette High School, where fights, threats and a weapon in school have everyone on edge.
"My daughter is not a number, she is my life," Jill Jackson told the board. "I want to make sure that my face is in front of you, realizing that she is a person and her safety along with her fellow classmates and teachers are in jeopardy."A father told the board he wants to tell his child not to feel afraid to go to school. "What are we waiting for? Are we waiting for a shooting? Is that what we're waiting for?" Jose Pacheco said at the meeting. "I don't want my kid to be afraid to go to school. I don't think any parent wants their kid to be afraid to go to school. We need to wake up."
Students even showed up to share their concerns and offer suggestions.
"Our classroom doors do not have external locks, which means that someone would need to go into the hallway to lock the door in a situation," said LaFollette student Gracie De Broux. "We need to be able to lock our doors from the inside. Our procedures are outdated. We need to update them so when class is in session doors are locked and closed from the inside."
One man who spoke wants to arm teachers.
"It is unfortunate that you don't trust your teachers enough to say that even those who have a concealed carry weapon license and maybe some experience in Afghanistan or in the military can protect their students," said David Blaska, who says he's an NRA member.
The board discussed that the district will start looking at adding interior door locks in classrooms, as one board member has proposed. At LaFollette, they're adding an additional police officer, a monitoring system and increased presence in the hallways.
For more on this story: http://www.wkow.com/story/37589769/2018/02/26/update-parents-share-concerns-hear-plans-on-security-from-madison-school-officials