(CROTHERSVILLE) – Crothersville Schools recently used about $59,000 in Indiana Secured School Safety Grant funding to have 3M safety and security window film installed on all exterior school windows. The coating was also installed on interior glass doors and front office windows.
The 3M coating is not designed to make a window bulletproof. But, it will prevent a broken window from shattering apart and keep the assailant from gaining entry, says Crothersville High School Principal Adam Robinson.
The installation was done by Columbus-based Indiana Glass Coatings.
A demonstration video on the company’s website shows a coated window stopping an attacker from breaking through a glass door even after shooting it multiple times with an assault rifle.
In December, an armed 14-year old gained entry into Dennis Intermediate School in Richmond by shooting out a glass door on the building. The teen eventually turned the gun on himself after a confrontation with police inside the school.
The 3M coating is designed to keep an armed threat outside the building long enough for police to respond to the situation.
The window coating is also meant to serve as protection in severe weather, like the 2012 Henryville tornado that shattered school windows and blew shards of shrapnel into school hallways,
It will also blocks enough sunlight to save an estimated 20 percent on cooling costs during the warm months of the year.
