09/21/2026
Why the GPA Supports Measure 3-644
The Gladstone Police Association membership has voted to support Measure 3-644, the Gladstone School District's upcoming bond measure.
You will also find an argument from the GPA in support of Measure 3-644 in the Clackamas County Voters' Pamphlet. We wanted to take a moment here to explain a little more about why school safety was an important part of our decision.
Representatives of the GPA recently sat down with Superintendent Dr. Gray to discuss the measure and school safety from a first responder perspective. One of the topics we discussed was visual wayfinding, and Dr. Gray committed to incorporating visual wayfinding into the District's school safety improvements.
Visual wayfinding is a relatively simple concept: clearly and consistently identifying buildings, entrances, hallways, stairwells, and other areas of a school so they can be quickly identified during an emergency.
Why does that matter?
Police officers, firefighters, and medical personnel responding to a critical incident may not be familiar with every hallway or room in a school. Clear identifiers give responders and dispatchers a common reference point—helping us communicate where something is happening and get resources where they are needed. The importance of pre-incident planning, familiarity with school facilities, and effective communication has been repeatedly identified in reviews of major school emergencies.
Measure 3-644 also includes funding for security cameras, access controls, door hardware, alarms, lockdown systems, secure entrances, and other facility improvements.
We appreciate Dr. Gray and the School District taking the time to meet with local first responders and, importantly, committing to putting those conversations into practice.
For these reasons, the Gladstone Police Association supports Measure 3-644.
The Gladstone Police Association is an independent labor organization representing its members. This endorsement is made solely by the Gladstone Police Association and does not represent an endorsement or official position of the City of Gladstone or the Gladstone Police Department.
Gladstone Police Association
Save Gladstone Schools,The Gladstone Daily
