Metro Council approves funds for shatter-resistant glass, improved radio systems at Nashville schools after Covenant shooting

Nashville’s Metro Council has approved $6.5 million in funding to improve radio communications between schools and police and install shatter-resistant protection on glass across the district.

That’s after a meeting last week on school safety in response to the Covenant School shooting. There, Metro Nashville Public Schools officials highlighted several ways the council could support the district’s safety goals.

Councilmember Jeff Syracuse serves as head of the council’s Public Health & Safety Committee. He has been leading the three-part series of meetings focused on addressing gun violence. At the start of the second event in the series on Wednesday evening, Syracuse made the announcement.

“My colleagues and I on Council, we finalized the next fiscal year’s budget, and we were able to find funds from this school year to upgrade radio equipment and safety glass,” Syracuse said. “So our school leadership can immediately begin the work on the procurement process for those critical needs.”

The radio system will help ensure seamless communication between schools and police in case of an emergency. The glass protection will make it more resistant to breaking if an intruder attempts to force their way in. Video footage from the Covenant School shooting shows the assailant was able to enter the building after shooting through glass doors.

The rest of Wednesday’s meeting was a discussion with leaders of Moms Demand Action and The Uvalde Foundation For Kids, moderated by Gill Wright of the Metro Public Health Department. Syracuse said it was an opportunity to bring the community together around the issue of gun violence and “begin to turn our grief into action.”

The third and final meeting in the series is set for Wednesday, June 28. It will focus on addressing gun violence as a public health epidemic. Guests will included representatives from the Metro Public Health Department, the Mayor’s Office of Community Safety, Metro’s Office of Family Safety and the Mental Health Cooperative. It will start at 4 p.m. in the council chambers at the Historic Metro Courthouse.