Raptor Security, the new security system that the State College School District recently put into place, has been working to create a safer environment for students, teachers and staff. Raptor tech was adopted into the school last year and is now being used more to ensure student safety.
So far, the biggest upgrade that the school has taken in terms of security is VisitorSafe. VisitorSafe provides a safer environment, allowing schools to welcome their community by basing their security measures on highly secure industries, such as banking or finance, such as background checks and ID checks.
It uses Digital verification via an ID document or card and matches the card to its holder. Both students and staff must use the IDs to be able to get into the school. If they are not identified through the school, then they have to be escorted through the building by a resource officer or a member of security.
For school staff, VisitorSafe allows the school to know if a student will be arriving late and makes it easy to check out a student for early dismissal.
VolunteerSafe complements VisitorSafe, conducting similar background checks to ensure that individuals volunteering at the school are safe and are permitted to be within the school’s premises. This includes monthly background checks to verify that they are still welcome in educational environments.
Mrs. Woodruff, one of State High’s Math teachers, said, “I do think that it is good to be able to walk down the hallway and know who’s there,” agreeing that Raptor provides comfort for those inside schools.
The Emergency Management System that Raptor offers has also played a significant role in State High’s emergency preparedness. It is able to control and manage drills, notify first responders during emergencies, account for individuals and reunify classes after an emergency or drill has taken place.
During an emergency, it’s very easy to lose students and teachers. Many things could happen that would cause a student to lose their teacher, and has to join another class during the drill or emergency. Raptor provides easy accountability.
“It allows for the straggler kids to get grabbed and accounted for more quickly than probably what would have happened in the past,” Woodruff explained. Teachers can grab kids, even if they are not in their classroom, and add them to a roster on Raptor so the school knows they are accounted for.
However, if a kid or teacher is missing, “It’s a lot easier to know if someone’s missing, so it’s a collaborative effort throughout the whole district, not just our school,” State High School Resource Officer Matt Hertlein.
The emergency notification system allows for quick communication between staff, administration and first responders. This means whenever there is an emergency within the school district, parents and teachers throughout the district will be notified immediately.
“It’s a program that is going to help us in the time of an emergency, we have more accurate attendance, and more accurate information,” Associate Principal Brett Wilson said.
The emergency management system also provides an emergency notification system, which allows a teacher to know if there is an emergency or a drill. “Where, if an alert is sent out, teachers know that it is actually a drill or if it is actually something like a real fire alarm,” Hertlein explained.
During an emergency or a drill, a teacher’s computer will shut down and bring up a message telling teachers if there is a real emergency or if there is simply a drill. This screen will not go away until the teacher acknowledges that there is an alarm. There is also a group messaging feature that helps to carry out messages silently if there is ever a need to do so. Teachers and staff are able to contact other staff efficiently in the case of an emergency.
Raptor provides a safer environment for students by giving them a place to report past, current or possible events that make them feel uncomfortable. StudentSafe provides an anonymous reporting program that gives students the freedom to speak and bring their concerns to the district.
It can also bring light to their parents by addressing student behaviors, through StudentSafe, parents can be made aware of their child’s behaviors in school. It can let them know about bullying, self harm and more. On the topic of preventing self-harm, StudentSafe also prevents harm to other students. Student Safe operationalizes student well-being policies by noting anonymous reports and acting on those reports to keep things like sexual harassment, bullying, suicide and things of that nature from happening in the district, as well as to help stop harmful incidents if they ever occur.
Raptor provides State High and the State College School District an extra layer of security students, staff, and parents more comfortable in school buildings. With advanced and easy-to-use technology that teachers trust, various ways of managing the people coming and going in and out of the school, and with resources for students to address their concerns, State College invites a safer culture into its schools.
