Santa Cruz High School ramping up security efforts

School safety is a hot button topic, especially in Santa Cruz, where problems in the city are spilling onto at least one local school campus.

School employees have reported finding trash and old needles around Santa Cruz High School. School guard James Skolnick, who is also a parent of students at the school, said he’s even found transients using the school’s showers during school hours.

Assistant Principal Henry Michele says he’s even found people who appeared to be living at the school, including one individual found living in a small area under the stairs inside the gym.

To help combat some of the security issues, school officials are adding five new gates around the campus. They’ve also started bringing in goats to chow down on the grass and vegetation on campus, helping eliminate tall, weedy areas in which people could hide.