Effective school security is essential for protecting students and staff, involving access control, surveillance, and collaboration with law enforcement to address various threats.
School security is a necessary conversation topic today for families, students, teachers, administrators, and law enforcement personnel. With increasing dangers and threats on school campuses all over the country, responsible parties need to innovate and revitalize security efforts to protect students and employees.
While some schools may be more vulnerable to danger and attacks than others, institutions at every education level, and in every location, need comprehensive security. During the 2021-2022 school year, public schools in the United States reported about 479,500 nonviolent incidents and 857,500 violent incidents. Events of particular concern include school shootings and other violent attacks that severely endanger and even, tragically, claim the lives of students, faculty, and staff.
Effective security measures protect students, faculty, other staff members, and visitors from threats, and mitigate the dangers of unauthorized entry, violence, and other dangerous situations that occur in schools.
When a school environment has been secured, it is far more conducive to learning. Students, teachers, and parents alike are better able to trust the school and its district, and can therefore focus on the educational activities at hand. The goal? We all want students to be able to unlock their fullest educational potential, and do so safely and without fear of violence or emergencies.
Physical security refers to the protection of people, data, software, hardware, personnel, and other assets from physical damage or attacks. Physical security measures include any efforts to protect these resources and individuals from theft, disaster, vandalism, and violence, and often entail an integrated regimen of both physical and digital defense, monitoring, and deterrent measures.
To maintain proper security for a school, it’s important to employ a multifaceted approach, including:
Security software, such as the platform offered by LiveView Technologies, should be versatile and able to be integrated with other security measures for more exhaustive safety and coverage. LVT’s software, for example, features highly intuitive motion detection technology,
Your school’s security response must plan for varied threats, including active shooters, other intruder situations, natural disasters, and more. Teach emergency protocols to students, teachers, and staff regularly, and conduct emergency drills to prepare for each event.
Take physical security measures that are calculated to preempt the different potential emergencies that may happen at your school, including motion-activated cameras for intruders, armed guards for shooter situations, and other strategies.
One of the best things a school can do to build highly effective security efforts is to foster a relationship with local law enforcement. Collaborate with local agencies to create emergency response plans, and to discuss ways your partnership can prevent incidents.
You may also consider having a resource officer placed with your school, to patrol the building and be prepared for any threats. In addition to improving response times and prevention efforts, the presence of a resource officer in your school can be a powerful deterrent against criminal activity and threats.
Even once you’ve installed the best technology and carefully crafted a security plan, the best thing you can do for the safety of your school and the people inside is to create a culture conducive to safety, transparency, and communication.
Ensure that students, faculty, staff, and parents are aware of the school’s emergency protocols. Conduct frequent training and emergency drills, and make an effort (in conjunction with law enforcement) to educate the community on how they can support school safety.
Help teachers create an atmosphere within their classes in which students feel comfortable airing issues and reporting suspicious activity. An environment filled with such trust and communication can help mitigate threats before they start.
Many incidents at schools, particularly those that end in violence and/or tragedy, stem from unresolved mental health issues. Create a culture that encourages students to speak openly and seek help in regards to their mental health. Work with parents to encourage such openness, as many issues can be better resolved within students’ own homes. Access government and charitable resources about mental health, and make it a priority within your school in an age-appropriate way.
Your school’s security cameras don’t need to belong to the grainy, low-resolution, analog variety. Modern security practices are extremely beneficial to schools; continuous footage, cloud storage, artificial intelligence, motion detection and video analysis, facial recognition, and other cutting-edge features can do a lot to help you prevent and investigate crime within your school. Each of these intuitive features can be found in a LiveView Technologies camera, and can catch crime at your school on a level that was never possible before.
Many schools, particularly within the public school system, all too often face a lack of funding that may impede their efforts to implement a security plan. Take a proactive role in securing the funds needed to keep your school safe; you may reorganize your school’s budget, appeal to district leadership, apply for federal aid, or seek donations from local figures and businesses.
School security is extremely important to students, faculty, staff, and parents.LVT surveillance systems offer a strong physical security program, providing a comprehensive solution for school monitoring. Real-time footage and alerts, as well as high-definition footage, enable quick response times and thorough investigations.
LVT camera systems are equipped with AI analytics among other features which greatly increase school security. Discover a new level of security, and protect your school in the most comprehensive way with LiveView Technologies.
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