It’s the final bell at Mount Washington Elementary School on a Monday afternoon. Students line up in what they call “The Great Hall,” where two main classroom hallways intersect with the gym and the library.
It’s also a space Bullitt County may need for voting.
In the midst of the daily chaos that comes with small children queuing for the bus, Bullitt County Schools head of operations Troy Wood demonstrates how voters would navigate the area.
“They’d roll through these double doors, walk through this main lobby area and access the gymnasium that way,” Wood said, spinning around and pointing out each intersection. “We’d have to shut off these two main hallways if students were on site.”
Wood says just one police officer would be available to stand in the hallway, separating kids from the general public. The district was advised that would violate state school safety laws. In 2022, a miscommunication between the schools and the clerk left schools unguarded during voting.