Safety gets a new home
Starting this school year, the new School Safety, Monitoring and Resources Department will be in charge of cameras, keycards, keycard readers, door buzzers, and all other security technology across the district. The department will also be in charge of providing security enhancements to support the district’s priority of student and employee safety.
“The School Safety, Monitoring and Resources Department ensures that all schools and district facilities are equipped with tools and technology systems to monitor and provide a safe environment for students, employees, and the community,” said David Bates, chief of Operations. “We will oversee the purchase, the implementation, and subsequently the monitoring of safety and related systems and supports at schools and on district facilities.”
The technology systems that will provide a safe environment for students, employees, and the community, includes critical safety tools such as cameras, card readers, metal detectors, shatterproof window film, intercoms, and the Raptor system. The new department will also be in charge of clear backpacks, door alarms, door blocks and other tools that help enhance safety. Leading these efforts is Vince Reyes, who most recently was an assistant superintendent in School Leadership.
“One of the new areas we will be handling is a silent alarm system for teachers,” Bates said. “There will be an app that teachers and school administrators will be able to use to lock down a building in case of a threat. For example, if a teacher sees something suspicious or threatening in the school parking lot, they can send out an alert through the app.”
The alerts will be school specific, but the department will also have the ability to send out notifications when a threat is reported to an area or a feeder pattern, Bates said.
The new department will work closely with Student Engagement—which supports school monitors, the Sandy Hook Promise initiative, campus crisis teams, restorative practices, etc. It will also work hand in hand with Maintenance and Facility Services to ensure that all the safety tools are working properly.
One of the activities already underway in the new department is making 3D maps of the schools to better coordinate with the Dallas ISD Police Department in case of an event at a campus. Emergency Management, which will continue under DPD, will also partner closely with the School Safety, Monitoring and Resources Department on security measures.
