The Lovejoy Independent school district in Texas last week became the first K-12 school system in the country to roll out the MadeSafe Alert System, a security technology in which all staff members are outfitted with personal panic buttons they can use to sound the alarm on anything from school shooters to medical emergencies.
The panic buttons look like a key fob and can be attached to a lanyard. They contain wireless transmitters that provide precise location information after a red button is depressed for three seconds. Those transmissions are communicated to “gateway” devices installed throughout the facility. The gateway devices transmit information directly to law enforcement and other designated first responders.
The surge in companies offering new K-12 security technologies follows last school year’s high-profile shootings at high schools in Florida and Texas.
