'We Will Recover And Heal', Broward Superintendent Runcie On Parkland One Year Later
Follow CBSMIAMI.COM: Facebook | Twitter
FT LAUDERDALE (CBSMiami) - It's been one year since the tragedy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland in which 17 students and staff members were killed in a mass shooting.
"The impact of this horrific event has been monumental in its scope and its reach across this county, the state, and throughout this nation," said Broward Schools Superintendent Robert Runcie.
Runcie said February 14th has been designated A Day of Service and Love to honor the victims and to continue working through the process of healing and recovery.
"It's an enormously challenging time but we believe that working together, coming together each and every day, although we may not always agree on the path to get there, but that working collectively we will find it and we will recover and heal as a community," said Runcie.
SEE PHOTOS: PARKLAND, ONE YEAR LATER
Runcie thanked those across the state and nation for their support.
"Although we mourn from the lives that we've lost through a horrific act of hate and anger, I believe that we must also celebrate the possibilities of what can be through love and support," said Runcie.
Runcie said he agrees with the actions Governor Ron DeSantis has taken toward improved school safety and it will be a good step in helping districts around the state understand where they stand on security.
"As much as we can learn will help us get better. My goal each and every day is to make our district safer than it was yesterday and anything that we can learn that will help us toward that goal, I absolutely welcome that," he said. "I expect that Broward County Public Schools will become the safest school district in the state, and maybe in this country."
PODCAST: PARKLAND ONE YEAR LATER
Runcie said he understands that his critics position but said the focus should be on moving forward.
"Our position has to be that we identify and be very clear on what the issues are, what the opportunities are, and what we can use to get better and learn from this tragedy to make our schools safer," he said. "At the same time will we work to provide a high-quality education to each and every one of our students."
"We've hired a school security expert, one of the best independent firms in the nation, they've been advising us on how to prioritize our investments to make sure we are doing what we can with the resources that we have to improve the safety and security across our schools. We've been doing that as we've gone throughout the past year," he said.
Following advice from national organizations and law enforcement regarding the potential for threats today, Broward County Public School has heightened security at all schools. Activities and movements during the school day will be restricted to the internal areas of the campuses.
All after-school clubs, activities, academic competitions, and athletic events – with the exception of FHSAA championship competitions– have been canceled for that evening. Night school and evening adult classes will occur as scheduled.
