Denver Public Schools (DPS) has announced the launch of a pilot canine weapon-detection program this semester at various sporting events that are expected to draw large crowds.

“Ensuring the safety of our students, staff and schools is our highest priority,” Greg Cazzell, the district’s chief of Climate and Safety, said in a statement.

Cazzell added: “This initiative reflects our ongoing commitment to creating safe and welcoming school environments.”

The canine program, Cazzell said, expands “layered safety measures” to keep schools safe. 

It’s unclear how many, if any, other Colorado school districts have employed such a strategy.

Christine Harm, director of the Colorado School Safety Resource Center, did not have any information about school districts that use gun-detection dogs. The Resource Center provides free training and resources to support secure learning environments.

The announcement came two weeks after 16-year-old Desmond Holly allegedly entered Evergreen High School with a revolver, fired and reloaded multiple times, injuring two students before turning the gun on himself.

Located about 30 miles west of Denver, Evergreen is an unincorporated mountain community with a population of less than 10,000 located in Jefferson County.

While always a concern, student safety took on a new urgency two years ago after a disturbed student at East High School shot two untrained administrators conducting a pat down. The shooting led the board to instruct Superintendent Alex Marrero to revamp the district’s safety plan.

It also prompted the return of armed police officers to campus.

Amid national police brutality protests in 2020, DPS cut ties with the Denver Police Department, ending a five-year contract signed in 2017 for school resource officers (SRO).

The DPS Department of Climate and Safety has contracted with K2 Solutions in North Carolina, budgeting $160,000 for the pilot program, according to Scott Pribble, a district spokesperson.

The canines are trained to detect firearms, not illegal substances. 

Pribble did not know how frequently guns are found at sporting events.

Founded in 2003 by “special operations forces and counter-terrorism professionals” — according to the organization’s website — K2 Solutions uses Labrador retrievers and German shorthair pointers.

A representative with K2 Solutions could not be reached for comment.

Editor’s note: Class Notes is a recurring update on area school districts from education reporter Nicole C. Brambila.