Students at two Pinellas County high schools no longer have to pass weapon detectors on their way onto campus.

Superintendent Kevin Hendrick announced April 14 that the district’s trial run of the systems at Gibbs and Palm Harbor University high schools ended April 17 after two weeks of operation.

The shift comes after repeated reports of long lines of students at Palm Harbor waiting to get through the checkpoints. Officials there turned off the machines as classes began on several days, so students would not miss instruction.

Hendrick said the initiative would shift away from the two schools “to ensure there’s no impacts as our high schools begin international testing and state testing soon thereafter.”

When announcing the detectors in a news conference, the district’s security director told reporters the pilot program would end May 29. Hendrick told the school board that the effort would now focus on using the detectors at school-based events, which will be announced in advance.

“We’ve learned quite a bit from the implementation in terms of logistical support and planning for successful deployment,” Hendrick said, also praising students and school staff for their effort and their feedback.

Parent Peter Westmoreland, whose child attends Gibbs High, was among those who raised concerns about the use of weapon detectors. He said the principal reported during a school advisory committee meeting that about 5% of students set off the alarm there, and no weapons were found.

The first day of implementation was tough “with kids in the rain,” Westmoreland said, “but it’s been pretty smooth overall.”

Board members said they would reserve their comments on the system until their May workshop. A couple mentioned that they had visited the schools to see it in action, also speaking to students and staff about their views on how it worked.

“I want to give a shout out and kudos for handling the weapon detection training as well as implementation as well as possible,” chairperson Caprice Edmond said.

Hendrick said he planned to report findings and make recommendations at the board’s May 12 workshop.