Baltimore school CEO pledges close to $50M for classroom doors that lock from inside

Baltimore City Schools CEO Sonja Santelises said Tuesday the district will spend close to $50 million to replace over 7,500 door locks.

The majority of classrooms in the district only lock from the outside and will be upgraded in case of emergency.

"At present, most classroom doors in city schools require staff to step into hallways to lock them, and this is a practice that poses an obvious security risk," Santelises said at a school board of commissioners meeting. "One of the things that this does mean, which we will get to during budget season, is the reprioritization of funds within existing projects to really be devoted to this particular effort."

Santelises said the plan is to start with high schools, which have the most lockdowns, and in most cases will require new doors and frames. She did not give a specific timeline for the project, and the pledged investment is more than double the $22 million capital outlay in the district's 2024-25 budget for all acquisition, construction and renovation projects.

At a September meeting, Baltimore Teachers Union members urged the district to align with national best practices for school shootings.

"I have to step into the hall when that shooting begins to lock my classroom door from outside my classroom with a key," Robert Marianelli, a teacher at Baltimore Poly, said.