Episode 177

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Published on:

23rd Feb 2026

School Safety Is Low Hanging Fruit – Why Aren't We Picking It? (Part 1)

Jerremy Alexander Newsome and Dave Conley sit with Paresa Noble on practical school safety as low hanging fruit. Dave shares insights on algorithms and the gray middle. Paresa describes how Uvalde led to Shield Our Schools and practical entry-delay measures. They break down costs, common security moves, controversial products, under-resourced schools, engaging school boards, overcoming resistance, and mental health as root cause.

Timestamps:

  1. (00:00) School safety is low hanging fruit – easy wins both sides can support
  2. (01:57) Protecting schools costs real money – but far less than the alternative
  3. (04:34) Common security moves start with honest assessment – why most schools skip them
  4. (08:08) Controversial security products need scrutiny – hype versus actual results
  5. (09:33) Under-resourced schools face the biggest safety gaps – funding exposes inequality
  6. (12:44) Engaging school boards works when you bring facts – local change is possible
  7. (15:27) Olive branch overcomes resistance – empathy beats arguments every time
  8. (18:26) Mental health is the real root cause – locks alone won't fix it

Connect:

  1. Paresa Noble – Shield Our Schools | Website | Instagram | LinkedIn | Threads

🌍 Connect with us: Instagram | YouTube | X

🎧 Listen to Episodes → Here

Transcript
Jerremy:

Every school day, parents send their kids off, trusting that

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the doors are locked and adults are

ready, but too often weak spots pop up.

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Pro entries missed gap turns and routines

eventually and can turn into tragedy.

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What if we grabbed low hanging fixes

like better locks, rallying communities

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around upgrades that work right now?

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No politics required.

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My name is Jerremy Alexander Newsom

with my co-host Dave Conley, and

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this is Solving America's Problems,

On Our Guns and America Series.

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From rights to reform to root causes,

we're focusing on school safety.

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With my dear friend, Paresa Noble,

founder of Shield Our School's

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Foundation, and CEO of Noble Media.

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a keynote speaker who dives into the

overlooked details, guiding parents,

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teachers, and leaders from awareness

to actions that protect kids.

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Paresa, welcome to the show.

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Paresa: Thank Jerremy and Dave,

I'm very excited to be here.

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Thanks for having me.

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Jerremy: Yeah, it's gonna be incredible.

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you've said before when we, me and

Dave were there together with you

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at the shield, our School Foundation

gala, which was really remarkable.

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At some stage you mentioned that

school safety is the low hanging fruit.

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What did you mean by that?

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Paresa: I feel like whenever

something like this happens, a

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tragedy like this happens, the

conversation gravitates toward that.

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Gun control of mental health,

which are valid points.

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There are things that should be discussed,

but we also have to come to terms with

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the weight of those solutions, right?

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When you start talking about changing

the constitution or you start talking

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about a complex issue of how to deal with

these versatile mental health issues that

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could be, attributing to these issues,

you look at a problem with, a very heavy.

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Complex solution that won't be as

easy to get across the finish line.

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when we talk about school shootings,

it is a very complex issue and those

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things still, of course, need to be

discussed, but the low hanging fruit.

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It's, It's, right in front of us.

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But since the conversation

doesn't often go to to that

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point, it's often overlooked.

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And when you start really looking at

how these school shootings have unfolded

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in the past, looking at how these

shooters are entering the school, how

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are they even accessing the school or

the students to do something like this?

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writing is on the wall, and it is low

hanging fruit because simple upgrades

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such as, enhancing the locks on the

exterior of the building, that's

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something that's not very high cost,

and it makes a world of a difference.

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So that's what I mean

by low hanging fruit.

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I think there's, when you look at the

whole problem and every detail of it,

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it becomes very evident that these small

fixes could make all the difference.

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Jerremy: Yeah.

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And to your point, one of my favorite

aspects of this, right, politics Aside,

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left, right, Democrat, Republican,

middle, independent, libertarian.

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One of the things that we discussed

at the gala was, and can you tell

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our listeners what's the cost right

now of protecting a singular school,

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' Paresa: cause as we're going through

our whole process, we're evaluating

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different schools and the different gaps.

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So it depends on.

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Where the school wants to put their

energy and their resources into.

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We've had schools do, bullet

resistant window film or, security

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film for $5,000 on their school.

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This was a smaller school as a smaller

private school and Colorado that

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was able to do it for that number.

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and then you look at it, it's.

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It's communication upgrades, making

sure all the teachers have a way to

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talk to each other in the case of

an emergency, something like that.

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We, we gave a school a $4,000 grant

and they were able to get a fully new

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communication system for their teachers.

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So it just depends on

what we're looking at.

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But even, I mean, just with technology

today, we talk about AI all the time.

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There are cameras that have the AI

technology that can detect someone walking

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up to the school with a firearm and

immediately notify police that costs $600.

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Dave: Wow.

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Paresa: So it's, it's, there's

billions of dollars in, in tax

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dollars that could be allocated here.

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that could help.

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Right.

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But it's also, it's, learned

a lot through this process.

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'cause you have different levels of

the system works, whether it be a

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public school district or if it's

charter schools or private schools.

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Private schools and charter schools

don't necessarily have the same access

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to that funding, that state level or

federal funding that public schools do.

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And then even when public schools

do, it depends on the city.

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inner city schools often have

less than their counterparts.

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So it's, there's, it's not a

consistent playing field as far

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as the resources that every school

has, number one and number two, it's

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just a matter of really looking at.

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What's the problem and what could

be the fixes that we install or

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implement, and they, they aren't

as expensive as we think they are.

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Another reason why it's low hanging fruit.

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Jerremy: Right.

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Well, you used the word billions.

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I mean, again, some quick Google

searches, and just to use your

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numbers, right, $5,000 per school.

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And a hundred thousand elementary and

secondary schools that are public in

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the us, that's 500 million, which is a

rounding error in our defense budget.

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Paresa: Wow, isn't that crazy to

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Jerremy: It is.

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It actually, it actually is kind of crazy.

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Dave, I, I saw that you had a question.

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Dave: So in your experience, given

that, with schools, unlike our defense

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department, like there's, there's,

there's always prioritization.

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Are there common security moves

that get sold but don't change much?

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Or do you, or do you provide any

guidance to schools being like, like

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maybe, maybe try this and not that,

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Paresa: yeah.

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it's an interesting.

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It's an interesting landscape

because we want to give the

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schools as much autonomy as we can.

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We want to provide the funding, and

we want them because they know their

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school, they know their student body,

they know their administration, they know

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their gaps, at the same time, there is

a level of expertise that comes with.

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How we assess the school.

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So we have, the chief of our

local sheriff department on our

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board, and she is helping us

lead the site visits that we do.

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she's looking for the main things.

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I think number one, which you'd be,

you'd think this is already happening,

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the exterior of the school being

able to be fully locked and secure.

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There's many schools, shouldn't say it's

a lot of schools, but there are definitely

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schools out there that maybe have a

lock on the exterior that doesn't work.

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or it malfunctions.

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That was the case in Uvalde, Texas.

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Actually, the shooter in, at Rob

Elementary School, back in, I believe

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it was 2023, the teacher went out

to her car to get food to bring in.

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She saw the shooter coming and she

went inside, she closed the door and

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the door was supposed to lock, but it

malfunctioned and he just walked right in.

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And we all know what happened there.

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it's, that is an extreme scenario, but

it's also, there are small things that

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can be done just on the exterior that

would make the world of a difference.

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And then when you go deeper.

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look at window film, I mean, when

we're on the conversation of hardening,

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hardening a school, it really all comes

down to number one priority, I would say.

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Is the exterior in the case that there

is a threat, how can we lock down the

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school and know that it is fully secure?

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If there are any broken locks, if

there are, walls that instead of

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being walls, there are windows.

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Those are probably the priority items.

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And then you start kind of

looking at all the other options.

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There's the cameras that I mentioned.

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There's communications, there's so many

different, Products and services that have

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come out in recent years, just because

this has become such a big problem.

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there's, there's something called Red

Bag, which is a, a program that you

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can roll out at an entire school where

they put red bags in every classroom

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and it has every supply that you would

need in the case of an emergency.

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It has a QR code that when it

happens, you scan it and then

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you're connected to the police.

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You're connected to the.

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To the school.

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So there's so many things as you go

more granular, but I would say number

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one, to answer your question, Dave,

it's, it's that exterior of the school

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because, I've attended a lot of, district

level school, district level meetings

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with security directors from different

districts, and the consensus is if.

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Kids are, and teachers

are behind a locked door.

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are safe.

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it's just, if we can make that locked

door be the exterior so that the person

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can't even get into the school, that's

where I would point people to start.

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And it's, it's common

sense, It just makes sense,

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Jerremy: Yeah.

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Paresa.

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Do you, do you have like a common

security move that gets sold?

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A whole bunch, but doesn't

really change anything.

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Is there something that is already kind

of being implemented that just doesn't

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really have a big impact in your opinion?

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Paresa: As far as the

security element, I, I think.

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It's hard to put your finger on one

thing that doesn't necessarily work.

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There's controversial items for sure.

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For instance, i.

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I've seen door barricades as one where

you put in front of your door and

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it makes it so the door can't open.

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and that one causes the most.

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The biggest red flag because part

of the process, in the case of a

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scenario is if you don't hear anything

in the hallway, you open your door

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to sweep the hallway to make sure

there's not students in the hallway.

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So that is counterintuitive to what a

lot of the schools are teaching in their

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security trainings for their staff.

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So that's one that comes to mind.

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I mean, I'll think of some more

and we'll, we'll explore as we

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kind of go, but I think that's

the main one that comes to mind.

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And, I, I really feel like any

initiative to harden a school or make

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an upgrade on a security front, it

doesn't fall on, empty territory.

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It's

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Jerremy: Yeah.

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Paresa: Especially in today's world.

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Jerremy: Yep.

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And so for a school that's

under-resourced, what are the

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moves that you really push for,

that you would love to see come

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into common practice?

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Paresa: It's, it's tough 'cause

these schools need to pay their

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teachers well and they need to.

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Buy books and they need to, there's

so many other costs that would go into

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academia to make a school great and to

make sure their students are thriving.

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That's where the budget should go to.

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Right.

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So I look at the resources, your,

your question was, these schools

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that are under-resourced, where

should, where should they go?

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Jerremy: Yeah, exactly.

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Like is, there is, should there

be more government grants?

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Should it be a public thing?

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Should we increase taxes

for it specifically?

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I mean, what are, what would

you really like to push

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for?

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Paresa: Sure.

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I think this specific question and

applies to public schools, right?

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Because private and charter kind of

don't, charter sometimes falls into

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receiving the resources, but when

you're looking at public schools, it's.

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tough to say, let's raise taxes, right?

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Because not fun.

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Nobody wants to pay more taxes.

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Jerremy: Yeah.

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Paresa: I, I just look at our district

here in Colorado and they recently

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passed, a bond, that is specifically for

types of security upgrades, and it's.

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Probably millions multimillions of dollars

that's going to this district specifically

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for those things, and is a solution.

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I mean, that's number one, but

it's also, you mentioned it,

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it's a rounding error, right?

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We have the money.

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The money is there already

for this type of upgrade.

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I think the big gap when you

look at public schools is.

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Number one, do these districts have a

point person or a grant writer to go

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after the grants that are out there?

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there's also, Matthew McConaughey

started a really wonderful foundation

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called, the Greenlight Foundation, and

they actually support public schools in

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applying for those grants and getting

the money to make those upgrades.

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So there are resources out there for,

people to take advantage of the money.

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I'd say just looking at a local level,

'cause I'm getting very intimate

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with how it's laid out in Colorado.

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and it's very different

district to district.

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Dave: Wow.

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Paresa: not a blanket approach to this.

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I think every district.

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county is rolling out different

things, different strategies,

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whether it be through a bond that

was passed in, I wanna say it was

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2024 that is now being implemented

across the district, or if it's.

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just leveraging the money that they've

raised themselves at the school to

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make upgrades, or if it's leveraging

foundations like Shield schools, to

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get a grant and help supplement their

academia budget so that their money

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can stay put for books and teacher

salaries and improving the student

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experience rather than the security.

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Right.

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Jerremy: Yep.

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So speaking about the district, going

district to district, how do you talk

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to a school board right now in a way

that also keeps it at a problem solving

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level instead of like a shouting match?

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Is it something that you do in person?

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Are you doing it via email?

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Was that.

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like priest.

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So walk us through it.

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Paresa: So up to this point it's

been very direct, one-on-one.

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I think it helps when we have, Just

what we've been able to do thus far.

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Our foundation has two years under

its belt, and we've handed a grant

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over to a handful of schools, and

that alone has started making these

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school board leaders want to sit

down with us and these security

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directors want to sit down with us.

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So I think to get to that point, it

was very much, me going out there and.

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of course, but nobody,

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Jerremy: Right.

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Paresa: Nobody

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Jerremy: I don't like email.

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Paresa: I know, right?

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Jerremy: Yep.

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Paresa: it's, very much

getting into the right rooms.

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There's, again, every district is

different, but there's programs

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where parents can get involved and

that's where I started, right, is

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how can I into the conversation or

get connected to these people at

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community events that they open up.

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To everybody.

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And then it's finding the right people

to then go build that relationship,

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tell them what we are doing.

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And once people know what we're

after, and they see that it truly

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is a bipartisan effort to bring

people together, it's, it's hard

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to argue these strategies, right?

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Jerremy: Mm-hmm.

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Paresa: hard to say, oh no, I

don't want to make sure that

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all the doors lock at my school.

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it's just a matter of, I think the

biggest hurdle that I've come across.

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Jerremy: Tell us.

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Paresa: This is a very,

sensitive topic, you

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Jerremy: Yeah.

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Paresa: A principal or as a

superintendent, there's a lot on your

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shoulders far as how you're handling.

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This and keeping everybody safe.

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So I think there is a little bit

of hesitancy for some of these

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leaders to even talk about it.

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That is what has been interesting

to me is, whether it be for security

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reasons or they wanna hold their cards

close to their chest, or they just.

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Are kind of walking in the

line of, oh, we're good.

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it's not gonna happen here.

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We've already done all the things.

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Whatever the reason may be.

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There have has definitely been, at least

probably I'd say half of the schools

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that I've talked to or tried to get

this in front of, that is the response.

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It's, or lack thereof we're okay.

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We don't need it.

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Dave: Does that,

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Paresa: interesting.

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Dave: Does that change how you sell it?

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Like, selling something into

fear, that's, that's tough.

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'cause we hear that with a number of

things, whether it's, like if you don't

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do this, something really bad will happen.

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Paresa: Mm-hmm.

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Dave: I mean like, this is

at the center of this, but is

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there, is there other ways?

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I mean the, the like, the friction

points between government and kids and

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schools and parents and bureaucracy.

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Where's your easiest path for

these, all these different places.

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Hmm.

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Paresa: I think it's the olive branch

of, I would say all these schools that

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we are giving grants to, God forbid

anything happens to them, but the one

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thing it does do is give peace of mind.

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Right.

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I think there's, you guys have kids

and I don't, I'm not sure if there're.

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or in schools or where they're at.

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But ultimately I can speak for

myself and many of my friends when

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I'm sending my kids to school,

it's, I don't wanna think about it.

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I probably think about it

more often because I do, I'm

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in this line of work, right?

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But I don't think I'm alone

in the sense that we live in,

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of just feeling that sense of.

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gonna give you an extra

big hug this morning.

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Have a great day.

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I think

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Jerremy: Yeah.

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Paresa: it's an underlying fear

that nobody wants to think about

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because it's so, so horrible.

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I think that's the olive branch is,

and I think that's where the invisible

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line is of these people who necessarily

don't want to talk about it because it's

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really leaning into the discomfort the

conversation to find the solution and.

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it's, it's a matter of being

uncomfortable to solve a problem

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before it could ever happen, and

I think that's the olive branches.

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this isn't gonna happen.

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You guys have taken the measures.

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You guys know how to lead the school.

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You have security trainings.

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You guys are already set.

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Dave: Yeah.

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Paresa: Here's an added

layer of protection.

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Here's some extra money for you to add.

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Whatever you see as the gap.

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Some schools are very anti AI

camera, I think rightfully so

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too, because it's not fully yet.

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I think there's, it's very

close, but there was recently a.

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Situation at a school that had implemented

that technology it mistook a kid's Doritos

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bag for a firearm, that kid got searched

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Dave: Oof.

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Paresa: Into a whole thing.

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So I think rightfully so, there's a

lot of schools that are hesitant to

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roll out AI powered surveillance at

their school for obvious reasons.

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but it, it doesn't have to be that, right?

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It could be as simple as here, get

some new walkie talkies, get some,

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like a universal lock in inside

the school for all the doors.

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there's so many that you could

do with the money, right?

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Jerremy: Yeah.

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Dave: Like you're, you're already cooking.

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Here's a spatula.

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Paresa: Yeah.

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Alex: Next—after Doritos get mistaken for

a gun, the “simple fixes” get real, fast.

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Paresa says schools need layers, not

gimmicks… and Jerremy pivots straight into

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the uncomfortable question: if security is

the bandage, what’s the WOUND underneath?

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Solving America's Problems
Solving America’s Problems isn’t just a podcast—it’s a journey. Co-host Jerremy Newsome, a successful entrepreneur and educator, is pursuing his lifelong dream of running for president. Along the way, he and co-host Dave Conley bring together experts, advocates, and everyday Americans to explore the real, actionable solutions our country needs.

With dynamic formats—one-on-one interviews, panel discussions, and more—we cut through the noise of divisive rhetoric to uncover practical ideas that unite instead of divide. If you’re ready to think differently, act boldly, and join a movement for meaningful change, subscribe now.