Artificial Intelligence, Clear Bags, Counselors Among Roanoke City Schools' Ideas To Keep Kids Safe

Henri Gendreau -
Superintendent Verletta White at a June 3 press conference at the Roanoke police station about threats involving city schools. PHOTO BY HENRI GENDREAU FOR THE ROANOKE RAMBLER

Students flash their ID badges as they enter a middle school.

They walk through a metal detector or show a new security officer their see-through backpack, which reveals only books and notepads, no weapons, in the bag. Elsewhere, scanners equipped with artificial intelligence detect whether a student is concealing a non-metal object that could be a weapon.

Roanoke City’s school board is considering such ideas as it weighs how to spend more than half a million dollars to improve safety for 13,000 students starting next fall.