NEWPORT BEACH

Arming school security guards with pepper spray, fencing off campuses and making sure police departments have school maps are only a few of the ideas offered during the first meeting of Newport-Mesa Unified’s safety committee Wednesday. Formed after the Columbine High School tragedy in Colorado and given added urgency by the preschool tragedy here at home, the group of parents, teachers, students and administrators is responsible for coming up with a comprehensive school safety plan. The group will meet a couple of times a month, then draft proposals for the board of education. Tom Jacobson, who is in charge of secondary education and the head of the task force, said district officials were expecting a windfall of funding from the state budget for new safety measures.