Teachers statewide have access to a new, phone-based security system while they are at school.
Paul Stolt, director of communications for the Bentonville School District said that, according to a state mandate, each district must participate with Rave Smart 911. Bentonville School District buildings are ready.
Although the district cannot mandate that every teacher use the free app on their smart phones, Stoltz said he hadn't heard from any teachers who objected.
The app puts an icon on the screen of a smart phone. Once the icon is pressed, five buttons appear; active shooter, medical, fire, police and 911. If a button is pressed, 911 is called automatically and every other staff member in the building gets a text message and an email warning them of the problem. The teachers and other staff members have to sign up to be included when a message is sent, he said.
Only the staff on campus is using the program, Cooper Principal Chad Mims said. So far parents and school volunteers are excluded, he said.
Vic England, Bentonville's energy and safety manager, set up the program for district schools. He said it's ready to go. He designed the "geo-fence" around each school that lets the app know if the caller is on campus. The campus includes parking lots and playgrounds, he said. He also provided maps of each school to the respective emergency services so that responders can find a specific classroom without a guide.
England said he's tested the app multiple times and has had good results. He said he heard about a problem in a Washington County school using the same system, but his testing has reassured him.
According to media reports, the child of a West Fork teacher accidentally pressed the "active shooter" button on a teacher's phone. Although the incident did not happen on campus, notifications were sent to the staff. However, 911 was not called. England explained that is the opposite of what is supposed to happen.
The system can be used off campus, England said, and 911 should be called, but the notifications are not supposed to go out if the call is made off school grounds.
"It's not flawless," he said about the system, "because it is mechanical, but during our multiple tests we have not had any issues."
One advantage of the app is that the caller doesn't have to speak. After the dispatcher answers and hears the automated message, the caller can speak to them; however, if the caller can't speak because they are injured or hidden, the automated message will get them the help they need, he said.
"Any time you can have access to this kind of information in real time, it benefits everyone," Mims said. "Heaven forbid that we have to use it, but the quicker the response the safer the kids."
General News on 10/07/2015