A new system was installed

Twenty-five years ago this week, the largest local school was becoming more secure.

The Sept. 1, 1998, edition of The Commercial Review featured a story about Jay School Corporation having a new security system installed at Jay County High School.

The plan was to have the new system — it included an electronic locking system with 30 exterior high-security door locks, 50 interior high-security locks, 20 master keys and 100 numbered keys — up and running in two weeks. 

In addition to the keys, six coded key pads would be used by teachers and staff in high-traffic areas in order to eliminate the need for all staff to have exterior keys. Each JCHS employee would have their own code, with entries to be tracked by a computer system.

“This is an excellent and state-of-the-art system,” said Jay Schools facilities director Ron Krieg. “I’ve heard rave reviews about the quality of this system from other schools and businesses that use it.”

Best Access Systems of Indianapolis installed the software for the $19,676.18 system.

Krieg said the equipment, approved by Jay School Board that June, was needed because the 23-year-old building was no longer secure.

“In 23 years there has been a lot of personnel turnover and (school officials) have lost the integrity of the key system,” he said. “You can buy the present blanks and have them made uptown.”

He noted that the new keys had a registered blank that could not be made locally.

Security experts recommend having such buildings re-keyed every six to seven years. At that point, the high school had never been re-keyed.

Keys were to be provided to emergency agencies such as Portland Fire Department, Portland Police Department and Jay County Sheriff’s Office.

“After hours and on the weekends we want to be able to secure that building,” said Krieg. “With the recent violence (in other schools in the nation), this will allow us to lock down the building electronically and quickly.”