After the deadly attacks on September 11, 2001 security has forever changed in America.
"Changes were made all across the nation. Pretty much everybody has been impacted by that. The way you fly on an airplane, the way you fly in and out of the United States," says Captain Jay Hastings from the Bartlesville Police Department.
Not only have seen it at airports across the country and government buildings but in our schools.
"We plan for any attack. We have to look at all hazards man-made and natural," says Kerry Ickleberry, the Safe and Health Schools Coordinator at Bartlesville Public Schools.
She says there have been at least 56 security changes at the school district since 2007.
"You have to be prepared. You have to plan. You have to drill. You have to test your plan and then you have to do it all over again," says Ickleberry.
There are currently two resource officers monitoring all of their schools. Part of the strategy is working closely with law enforcement agencies to make sure they cover all their bases.
The school district's close relationship with the police department proved to be effective when they put a stop to a potential mass shooting six years ago.
"I will never forget that day ever. We were at school whenever a student brought the threat to a principal," shares Ickleberry.
The suspect was a former high school student, Sammie Chavez, who was 18 years old at the time.
He was arrested just hours before the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting took place in Connecticut claiming the lives of 20 children.
Whether or not Chavez was planning to actually carry out his shooting plot at the high school, Captain Hastings says we will never know, but every threat is taken seriously.
"Threat doesn't necessarily need to be a physical act or physical violence. It could just be the threat of physical violence or harm," explains Captain Hastings.
Because violent acts in schools have become all too common, education institutions continue to re-examine safety measures to keep students and staff safe.
"Safety is a living thing that every day you got to look at and see hey what can we do here to make it different," says Ickleberry.
According to a Gallup poll in March of this year, 40% of respondents answered they are worried a "great deal" about a possible future terrorist attack in the U.S. with 28% responding a "fair amount", 22% answering "only a little" and only 9% who said they are not worried.
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