Starting next school year, USD 232 will join other Johnson County school districts that use a mobile security alert system across their buildings and campuses.
This month, the USD 232 school board approved the purchase and five-year use of the CrisisAlert system, which is sold by a school safety firm called CENTEGIX.
The system gives any teacher or school staff member the ability to call for help or initiate a lockdown in their building with the press of a button on an individual security badge.
“If the district’s going to keep growing like it is, you have to keep growing the safety efforts with that, and this is the latest, greatest technology out there,” said Rob Moser, USD 232’s safety coordinator.
Here’s how it works:
- Every staff member would receive a security badge tied into a network with bluetooth.
- With a few presses of a button on the badge, staff members can call in an emergency, whether it’s contained or one that requires a building-wide lockdown.
- Pressing the button three times initiates a smaller alert, for incidents like fights and medical emergencies.
- To initiate a building lockdown, someone would need to press their badge’s button eight or more times. That would be used for more serious emergencies, like an intruder.
- When a lockdown is called, lights mounted around the building will flash and a lockdown notification will come over the intercom.
- Since the badges tie into a bluetooth system in the building, it can identify exactly where the emergency was called in.
The school board had some concerns
- Though the system’s approval was ultimately unanimous, some school board members were worried about the potential for false alarms.
- “Our recommendation is that the benefits of it outweigh the risk of what could happen with a false alarm,” superintendent Frank Harwood said.
CrisisAlert will cost roughly $776,000
- The bulk of that price tag covers the cost of installation.
- The money for the new system comes from leftover dollars in the safety and security side of the 2018 bond.
- If future school boards decide to renew the system’s use after this initial five-year contract, it will cost less since the system will not need to be installed again.
- Additionally, district spokesperson Alvie Cater told the school board that expenses to renew the CrisisAlert system could be covered by the capital outlay account, which is a property-tax generated fund that can be used to pay for equipment.
- USD 232 also plans to hire a safety technician who will oversee the implementation of the new system and eventually oversee its utilization, Cater said.
Other JoCo schools are using CrisisAlert
- The Olathe school district was the first district in the Kansas City metro to adopt the CENTEGIX system, followed closely by Blue Valley schools.
- The Spring Hill school district, which covers south Johnson County and some of Miami County, also approved the CrisisAlert system in March.
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