Area resident Michael Jelineo questions why Vancouver Public Schools won’t spend the money needed to provide better locking devices on doors
Editor’s note: Opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are those of the author alone and do not reflect the editorial position of ClarkCountyToday.com
Do you know if the door to your child’s classroom(s) locks from the inside? When we hear schools are on a lock down, don’t we assume that the kids are inside their classrooms and the doors have been locked from the inside?

Recently the Board of Directors of Vancouver Public Schools (VPS) were asked, how many classroom doors lock from the inside? It was revealed that 33 percent of the doors at one school could lock from the inside. Why is it not 100 percent?
Vancouver School District thinks spending $1.50 on a magnet that you stick in the door jamb is the solution. If door handles were replaced with locking devices the cost could be $200-$1500 per door. These new handles would allow doors to be locked from both the inside and outside.
VPS spent thousands of dollars on new wheeled health carts last year, but they won’t spend thousands on door locks.
Michael Jelineo
Vancouver
Also read:
- Opinion: Were Republican voters just sleeping during the August primary election?CCRP Chairman Matt Bumala says 60% of primary no-shows in the 17th and 18th districts were Republicans.
- Opinion: WA Cares’ launch showcased care WA Cares did not provideGov. Ferguson showcased a caregiving arrangement at the WA Cares launch that the program had not paid for a single day of.
- Opinion: Portland’s War on Cars Part 4 – A smarter automobile strategy to end gridlockO’Toole argues fuel wasted in Portland-area congestion has sextupled since 1982, generating 250,000 tons of extra greenhouse gases annually.
- Opinion: The Tooth Fairy’s secrets to making brushing & flossing magicalDelta Dental of Washington’s Tooth Fairy Experience offers free resources to help children build lifelong brushing and flossing habits.
- Opinion: Transit ridership trends are dismal but regional plans are obliviousPuget Sound transit passenger-miles fell 31% from 2015 to 2024 despite a half-million-resident population increase.







