Five of Albuquerque Public Schools’ middle schools have implemented a new policy requiring all student backpacks to be clear, citing efforts to enhance safety and security.
“Clear backpacks will make it tougher for students to conceal things that they shouldn’t have, like weapons,” district superintendent Dr. Gabriella Blakey told KOAT News.
To help families meet this requirement, the district provided thousands of free clear backpacks to students Jan. 6 after announcing the policy.
“We have invested more than $60 million on fencing, cameras and alarms to access secure vestibules and other safety infrastructure at our schools,” said Superintendent Dr. Antonio Gonzales. “That includes installing commercial heavy-duty locks at all 6,900 classrooms in the district to allow staff to lock doors from inside.”
In addition to the five middle schools, Del Norte High School will adopt a clear backpack policy in August, KOAT reported.
