A troubling report about school security has surfaced in Uvalde.
An inspector posing as an intruder was able to make their way inside a school cafeteria during a campus safety audit, NBC News reports. Uvalde CISD Interim Superintendent Gary Patterson shared the findings during a school board meeting Monday (December 19).
Patterson said the school district received a call to let them know three schools were selected for the security check. He could not share which schools were selected.
"They attempted to gain access on three of our campuses over a two-day period. There was access gained on one exterior door at a campus that was in a cafeteria loading dock area," Patterson said. A delivery truck was backing in toward the loading dock door when the auditor was trying to get inside. The door was opened and closed several times by people making the delivery and the latch wasn't secured because the door wasn't closed hard enough.
The auditor was able to make their way inside by tugging at the door. After entering the school cafeteria, the auditor was stopped by cafeteria staff. No students were inside the cafeteria at the time.
"That really is 100% my responsibility to see that didn’t happen. The delivery of goods into loading docks was just something, quite honestly, that I overlooked. But I won't overlook it next time," Patterson said, adding that this inspection highlights two safety concerns: "a faulty door and the importance of securing loading areas while deliveries are being made," NBC News reports. Loading area doors will be checked and staff will be trained when school starts again in the new year, Patterson added.
This audit is part of Governor Greg Abbott's statewide program that randomly inspects schools amid fallout from the Robb Elementary School shooting in May, where 19 students and two teachers were killed.