Midland Borough School District in Midland, Pa., has installed the Brivo ACS WebService access control system at its elementary and middle schools. ADT Security Systems, Inc., specified and installed the Brivo system.

Prior to installing Brivo, Midland’s classroom doors opened to the outside, and the back and loading dock doors were unlocked at most times. “There was basically access to the whole building,” said Kim Kaiser, Dean of Students/Safety and Security. Over time and as other school districts confronted security threats, Midland Borough knew things had to change.

It’s not that Midland had no security; the school had a card reader access system and employees were logged in as they entered the buildings. But Kaiser knew the school had to be more prepared, “If we can get a few extra seconds or even minutes and buy some time for the emergency response personnel to get here, then we need to install the technology to ensure such capabilities.”

ADT’s Ray Diesch introduced Kaiser to the Brivo Online Access Control System, and now the school’s front, back, loading dock, and teacher access doors are secured and monitored by Brivo ACS. Staff and teachers with access cards have easy access, but visitors must enter the school through a single point of entry which is also under video surveillance. A keypad was installed on the front door along with an intercom. The Brivo system logs all activity in and out of the building. The system enables Kaiser and his staff to lock down the entire building with ease. Kaiser was also pleased with the ease and speed of system installation, “It was amazing, all of it was done in one day. ADT did a quick and efficient job.”

“Compared to other systems I’ve seen,” Kaiser continued, “Brivo is much more user friendly, it’s easy to operate, and does exactly what we need to do. We have constant badge activity needs—new ones, revoking others, and all the rest. Brivo makes administration easy and very fast. We now have an accurate record of employees coming and going, and we can also log in deliveries and confirm the delivery times. I really appreciate the enhanced control we have.”

Kaiser needed minimal training to get up and running. Students know what doors they can enter and that certain doors are monitored at all times. “I really have to thank the Superintendent, Sean Tanner, and our School Board for approving top-of-the-line equipment to improve the management of the school. Our faculty and staff and students feel a whole lot safer,” Kaiser concluded.