June 1, 2026
An overhead view of the prototype of a security vestibule, a permanent intermediary structure now recommended for all Transylvania County School main building entrances. Transylvania County Schools
Jonathan Rich
BrevardBeagle.com
Future visitors to any Transylvania County Schools campus may see something new upon arrival: an upgraded security vestibule at each main entrance which anyone must pass through once the school day has started and before setting foot inside the interior of the school structure.
This updated security measure, which will be installed at all nine public school campuses, was unanimously endorsed Friday at a joint meeting of the Transylvania County Board of Education and the Transylvania County Board of Commissioners School Bond Project Subcommittee at the Morris Education Center.
School Superintendent Lisa Fletcher told subcommittee members that school staff and principals at each of the county schools gave input to designers of these improvements specific to their campuses, but the overall concept is that there will be one single unlocked entrance for students to enter shortly before and after the school day.
After the first bell rings and the school day starts, all visitors must use an adjacent secured and locked vestibule entrance until the end of the school day when the student entrance will be unlocked to allow for student dismissal.
According to Fletcher, these upgraded entryways were designed to create one single unified point at each school’s main entrance that does not allow immediate access inside and the vestibule will give staff a better visual of who is visiting a school while simultaneously providing additional security features at all county public schools.
“It’s the same approach at every school. The single point of entry does not allow immediate access to the interior and the layout is very intentional,” Fletcher explained. “The goal is to create a secure entrance that separates students from visitor entry, so visitors are not entering the building with the students … It also recognizes the importance of the school resource officer up front near the main entrance along with a waiting area for the visitors who may be there for a meeting. Overall, this is designed for safety.”
“This would create this standard at all of the school sites and it will look a little bit different depending on the school site because they’re working within the existing site constraints,” added Transylvania County Manager Jaime Laughter, “but each one will have the same features.”
Transylvania County Schools
The vestibules had an initial price tag of $5,4 million, but cost savings from previous school projects allocated from within the scope of the greater school bond project and the education capital fund balance will bring the actual cost of modifying the entrances to all school campuses to $2,184,218.
Members of the School Board and the Board of Commissioners were in agreement this upgrade to existing security improvements at public school buildings is a welcome and necessary buffer needed for school safety throughout the entire school district.
Members of the joint subcommittee discuss funding for the vestibules Friday at the Morris Education Center. Jonathan Rich / BrevardBeagle.com
“I’m very impressed with all the savings that came in under budget,” said County Commissioner Chase McKelvey, who serves as chair for this subcommittee. “With the work we’re doing and the collaboration between both boards and the school system, being able to reallocate $3.2 million for a $5.4 million project and then having to move only $2.1 million for this project is huge to be able to accomplish everything that we are needing to do for school security.”
The vestibule security project comes after the Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a $1.47 million upgrade of the public address intercom and bell systems at all county public schools last week and a decision last year to install the Centegix crisis alert and visitor management software at all nine public school campuses.
“School security is massive and all of us can agree to that,” McKelvey continued. “I want to thank everybody for what they have done and everything that we continue to look forward to.”
“We’re moving forward,” summarized Board of Education member Greg Cochrane. “We’re not procrastinating. We’re getting stuff done. It’s overdue, so it’s a good job all the way around.”
“I do agree,” County Manager Laughter said following the unanimous vote by the subcommittee to recommend the vestibule improvement be added to a revised budget and timeline for the second phase of the greater school bond project. “Adding the secured vestibules is the driving factor for the initial funds, but it is going to make a huge difference.”