WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (WGHP) — Random metal detector checks at high schools in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools are working.

On Wednesday, North Forsyth High School leaders found a gun in a trash can on campus not far from where students were walking through the metal detectors. Next week, there will be a conversation about making them permanent.

Superintendent Tricia McManus admits metal detectors are not a solution. She believes parents should play a larger role in keeping guns off campus.

On Tuesday, district leaders, board of education members and law enforcement officials will discuss this further. FOX8 found out where members of the school board stand.

“We have to think through…all of the possible scenarios and really make a determination about what is it that we can do with our very limited funds,” said Alex Bohannon, the vice chair of Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education.

Metal detectors come with a price tag. The ones currently in use at schools across the district cost between $2,700 and $3,000 each. There are 73 split between the middle and high schools, and they move around. Conversations about making them stationary are happening now.

“We are up for that if that is going to keep our kids safe,” McManus said.

There have been six firearms found on campuses across the district this school year.

“You don’t feel safe when people are bringing guns on campus, particularly when they’re your peers,” Bohannon said.

Bohannon and other board members FOX8 talked to Wednesday evening want to see proof permanent metal detectors work better than random security checks.

“At the end of the day, what I have to do is…listen to what I hear and then make a decision that is grounded in at the end of the day what we have available to spend and to invest but also balancing that with the fact that…the safety of our children in this community is priceless,” Bohannon said. “Some school board members have concerns about how permanent metal detectors would affect the learning process. They don’t want students to feel uncomfortable. They also think there can be other ways to improve safety at schools like security cameras and body scanners.