The campus security department of a Toronto-based university commissioned a study to determine whether unique solutions positively influence decision-making and swiftness of incident response.
When it comes to integrating technologies, policies and procedures for K-12 and college organizations, the class acts are those that best know the classrooms, campus threats, security solutions, stakeholders, infrastructures, budgets and culture all wrapped inside these “micro-communities.”
A decade ago, the University of the Pacific installed emergency phone towers and wall mounts from Talk-A-Phone as an upgrade to aging emergency communication equipment.
Unfortunately, the makings of an active shooter situation arise almost every day. Just weeks ago, for example, a 16-year-old student from Dysart High School of El Mirage, Ariz., was arrested for carrying a loaded .25-caliber handgun to school and for making threats to a 14-year-old student, according to a report from the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office.
While it may seem easy to address separate threats in separate ways, there are advantages to taking a more integrated approach to the use of security technology on campus.
Especially in K-12 environments and in certain locations or situations within higher education, the ways that staff and security manage visitors can make a crucial difference, according to Patrick V. Fiel Sr., a recognized national campus security expert.
A vulnerability in a school records system could reveal the home address, social insurance number, telephone number and class schedule of any student enrolled, but when Hamed Al-Khabaz revealed and tested the flaw, he was expelled.