On April 1st, 2025, Hartland Arrowhead voters failed to pass the proposed referendum to consolidate the North and South campuses into one building. A passed referendum would have enhanced safety and security, updated instructional spaces, and improved efficiency. The failure contributes to concerns over the current safety level of the school.
“As the Student Resource Officer, I have to worry about the worst possible things happening daily, so I can never be complacent,” said Deputy Dunker, one of Arrowhead’s two School Resource Officers (SROs). “I am always researching new ways to make our campus safer and secure.”
Over the years, Arrowhead has made efforts to improve campus security. One improvement that has been recently added is the addition of Deputy Schmidt as a second SRO. Dunker points out that “some schools do not have the luxury of having an SRO on school grounds during the day,” and that “having an officer on school grounds has proven to be an active deterrent to school violence.”
One concern is the large size of the campus, as between North and South campuses, 40 different doors need to be secured. Dunker proposes that “if we were all under one roof, this would be much more efficient for school safety and would make things safer.” Also, it is very rare for schools to have two different campuses like Arrowhead does, and that causes attention and funds to be spread out to both campuses.
“South Campus is almost 70 years old and requires significant investment in maintenance,” Dunker stated. “The age of the building can also make it harder to integrate new safety technologies as they are developed”.
The lack of locking vestibules at the main entrance is cause for concern. Dunker explained that locking vestibules are where “visitors need to be buzzed into the main entrance, where they are then held in another locked area (like a main office). They then need to have the next door to the rest of the building unlocked for them to access the building.”
Dunker has had several law enforcement officers visit Arrowhead. He commented on their surprise at how other schools in the area have surpassed Arrowhead in terms of facility quality and security. Dunker said that schools have been able to “integrate several new cutting-edge safety technologies that Arrowhead has not been able to,” and that makes them have a higher level of security.
If the referendum had passed, new safety technologies would have been improved, such as enhanced safety and security by consolidating into a single school at the North building. Also, it would have constructed secure entrances at North Campus, ensured the entire building has a sprinkler system, and improved traffic flow.
“I have seen some nice improvements since I started as the SRO, such as improved security cameras, new alarm systems, and increased student and staff training/drills,” Dunker said.
