UVALDE, Texas — There are eight new members of the Uvalde CISD Police Department. They are going through intense training in hopes of never repeating what happened on May 24, 2022.

“Once you go into an active situation, each officer has a role,” said Uvalde CISD Superintendent Gary Patterson.

What You Need To Know

  • Uvalde CISD Police Department has revamped, adding eight officers and upgraded gear 

  • It's been more than a year since 19 students and two teachers were killed in a mass shooting at Robb Elementary School

  • Police officers have undergone active shooter training, and Uvalde CISD Superintendent Gary Patterson said he is confident in the department

  • Law enforcement's response to the May 24, 2022, shooting was heavily criticized. It was more than an hour before police made entry to a classroom and killed the shooter

There’s a new look to the Uvalde CISD Police Department.

“It’s hard to say there’s a more criticized and scrutinized police department in the United States than the Uvalde Independent School District,” Patterson said.

Patterson is referring to the delayed response at Robb Elementary last year, when 21 people died waiting more than an hour for officers to respond.

“We’re trying to look at all the scenarios and train our force in as many situations as we could,” Patterson said.

There are eight new officers on the force. Some are experienced and some are rookies. All are new to the school district.

“I have 100% confidence that this new force will not hesitate one second to save lives,” Patterson said.

Patterson says he’s got faith in the revamped department. It's because they’ve put in hours of intense training and invested in equipment upgrades.

“Doesn’t have to be an active shooter that triggers a lot of these safety and protocols and emergency situations we’ve been working through,” Patterson said.

It hasn’t been determined which campuses these officers will serve. But next school year the presence of nearly 40 Department of Public Safety officers will be cut in half.

“Now that our force is back in place that’ll just help reinforce what we have,” Patterson said.

With campus improvements such as fences, cameras, and card-access doors, Patterson hopes the community sees safety is the district's priority.

“Rebuild trust,” Patterson said. “We want our community to feel safe when they come to our schools.”