Tag: School

Being late for school is one of the most common anxiety-inducing dreams experienced by people of all ages. You may have experienced it yourself: the feeling of running late and never being able to catch up with the rest of the class. What if that feeling was not a dream and, in fact, it is real because you’re a student that spends each morning waiting in line as part of the weapons screening process? This was the scene at many schools within the Niagara Falls City School District as security wands created long lines and set off false alarms at a rate of 50 percent, requiring half of all students to be searched daily and delayed in getting to class.  

With a student body of 2,000, the use of wands, often followed by bag checks, delayed the start of each day by an hour, sometimes longer in inclement weather. While one shortcut would have been to pull aside a handful of high-risk students that may be considered a threat to others, it would be an irresponsible and biased tactic. Therefore, the dated screening process continued, cutting into valuable instructional time, and requiring the attention of approximately 20 staff, consisting of teachers and school safety officers that had to leave their posts to manage the lines at school entrances. 

When COVID-19 hit, the issue was temporarily suspended. 

Post-COVID-19 Return to Classroom Heightens Need for New Safety Protocols 

Like many schools navigating the post-pandemic return to the classroom, Niagara Falls saw an uptick in violent actions. While the majority of incidents were not weapons related, there was more fighting. Mark Laurrie, school district superintendent, attributes the situation to students being away from each other for 18 months, having endured many social, physical, and sociological changes, and needing to figure out who they are, who their friends are, and how to reacclimate to the school day.  

“Consider that many of these students missed a lot, if not all, of the experiences of being in middle school and suddenly, they’re returning as high school students. The first few months back were challenging,” said Laurrie. “Meanwhile, as the threat of gun violence across the country increased, we knew we couldn’t continue to rely solely on our dated process of wands, bag checks and cameras. At the urging of some members of the Board of Education, we looked into a more modern way to detect and address potential safety threats.”   

A Layered Approach to Safety 

Laurrie assembled a team responsible for developing a comprehensive and layered approach to safety that spans people, processes and technology. Part of their role included keeping all stakeholders apprised of each step in the planning, research, evaluation and roll-out phases of the safety plan. They did this using a variety of communication vehicles including regular updates via email and social media, along with speaking at school committee and Board of Education meetings.   

The technology evaluation team included a school safety director, who was the former chief of police, along with a maintenance director and technology director. This team was tasked with researching weapons detection screening systems. The criteria included an unobtrusive, trauma-sensitive design that would not emulate the prison screening process. It also needed to be easy to set up and break down for use in other areas of the campus, leveraging the resource while ensuring the investment didn’t quickly become obsolete.  

After speaking with several schools and a close examination of the systems at Highmark Stadium, home of the Buffalo Bills, the Niagara Falls School District determined the Evolv Express systems were the right choice. The technology exceeded expectations while offering the least intrusive, fastest and most comprehensive weapons detection system. The next step was to get consensus from the stakeholders and community.  

Since the safety committee had been providing regular updates, the decision to install Evolv systems received unanimous support. The systems were first installed in the high school and two middle schools. To ease the transition to the new safety protocol and have the systems support the culture in the school environments, each Evolv system includes images of the school mascots.   

Niagara Falls Schools Cite People, Processes and Technology Benefits 

The schools have seen many benefits since installing the Evolv systems. “Using Evolv, we’ve reduced the entry screening process from one hour down to 15 minutes, and from a staff of 20 down to three, all without compromising safety,” said Laurrie. He added that the sensitivity ratings were set at the highest levels to over-alarm as part of establishing the new school safety standard. Still, they reduced the wand-based false alarm rate from 50 percent down to 10 percent using Evolv Technology. 

Teachers and staff have returned to their posts throughout the building instead of being focused on the entrance. “The Evolv systems provide a ripple effect of security upgrades as students are less likely to act up when they see an adult in the hallway,” said Laurrie.   

Also, since students easily flow into the schools, the systems create an opportunity for teachers and administrators to greet students to start the day. Developing these personal connections is an important part of a layered approach to safety – students are less likely to start fights or initiate violence when they feel seen, heard and part of the community.  

Since setting up and taking down the Evolv systems is a seamless process, Niagara Falls also uses them for football games, choral concerts, graduations, and even voting.   

From a technology perspective, Laurrie said, “We also like that Evolv systems work independently and don’t interfere with our computer network. And we have the assurance that the AI technology is regularly updated so we’re not investing in technology that will quickly be outdated. Everybody feels safer, the students don’t feel it is obtrusive, and the community feels more protected.” 

After using the systems for a year, Niagara Falls decided to standardize on Evolv and purchased more systems for its elementary schools. Evolv continues to complement the school district’s layered approach to safety, making those late-to-school fears a thing of the past. 

Unless and until the epidemic of gun violence in schools begins to subside, schools will continue to look at better ways to keep their community safe so the focus can remain on education and the social and emotional wellness of students, faculty, and staff. As a result of the rise in violence, educators and school administrators are now being required to “get schooled” on the very important business of keeping people safe, a highly advanced skillset of subject matter experts from the Department of Defense, TSA, FBI, and Secret Service, in addition to security professionals keeping major venues safe across the nation.  

Knowing that to mitigate risk, every second counts, as does the technology, people, and processes in a layered security approach, one solution school districts are considering is weapons screening. This is a new approach to security for schools. It is not the only answer by any means, but rather, one innovation allowing schools to increase their security posture without creating a prison-like experience. New technology, including weapons detection, access control, video management systems, and social media monitoring, are important tools, but are not foolproof. Technology is an effective part of a safety plan for schools; but that plan must include better social and emotional support for students at risk, a connected and engaged school community and education, and action around safe and responsible gun ownership.   

While traditional metal detectors have been around for more than a century, advanced weapons detection systems, such as Evolv Express®, are a completely new experience for most schools deploying them. As a result, they require administration, educators, parents, students, and school security personnel to develop and learn new protocols and become familiar with new technology.  

Naturally, innovative technologies are often misunderstood. That’s why we wanted to address some topics about how Evolv Express, the system that is helping to make the world’s leading sports stadiums, concert venues and theme parks safer, works for schools. With hundreds of schools around the country having incorporated Evolv Express into their safety plan, here are some important things to understand about the technology, how it works, and our corporate commitment to customers’ safety.  

What we share with the public and what we don’t  

Let’s start with the concept of transparency in marketing weapons detection technology.  It is well understood in the security industry that sharing details of a security system or operation puts people at risk.   

It is important to understand that Evolv Express systems are designed to detect various types of weapons, and components of weapons, that could cause mass harm, not items that are readily available within schools. There is no perfect solution that will stop 100% of threats, including ours, which is why security must include a layered approach that involves people, process, and technology.  

The best technology is transparent as to what it does without disclosing a “blueprint” to a bad actor that could use it to do harm. Those in charge of keeping buildings safe must assume that bad actors are always looking for ways to circumvent the security processes in place. It is devastating that this concept even applies to schools, but it must.  

This is a best practice well known in the security industry, notably the TSA. The TSA carefully guards Sensitive Security Information (SSI) to keep the public safe. SSI is information that, if publicly released, would be detrimental to transportation security, as defined by Federal Regulation 49 C.F.R. Part 1520. 

As John Pistole, former director of the FBI and TSA has explained, “we saw this in the real world on Christmas day 2009, when Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula sent Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab from Brussels to Detroit with a non-metallic IED hidden in his underwear. They knew in advance that there was no detection for non-metallic bombs in most airport security protocols and regimens in use at the time. We know that they discovered this vulnerability through extensive online research. We also know that they conducted multiple scouting missions to probe and test for vulnerabilities at specific facilities using specific screening methods.” 

Marketing weapons detection security requires a delicate balance between educating stakeholders on new technology and not providing bad actors with the information they could use to do harm. So, while public-facing marketing materials are intentionally not specific, we communicate all aspects of the Evolv Express system – including limitations and capabilities – with the trusted security professionals at our customers, partners, and prospects. We believe there should be nothing schools deciding to deploy Evolv Express don’t know about the technology before making the decision to include our systems as part of their security approach. That’s why our team works tirelessly to make sure they have all information necessary to determine if Express is the right weapons screening system for them.  

This is not “deceptive marketing” or “security through obscurity” as those not in the weapons detection industry might declare, but rather, a critical and proven best practice of security professionals who have the profound responsibility of keeping the public safe from harm.    

Why schools are investing in AI-based weapons detection  

Customers making the decision to deploy Evolv Express do not do so lightly. They test our systems, conduct extensive research, speak directly with customers, assess the capabilities and limitations, and vet against other options before selecting the best solution for their district.   

Here is what we know: When it comes to security, schools are asking for ways to help make their buildings safer, reduce anxiety around gun violence, and speed up response time to threats.   

Evolv Express is the only artificial intelligence-based weapons detection system that pinpoints exactly where a threat is on the person while distinguishing most everyday items from weapons. The system looks at threats and where they are, not at people. This speeds up response time to an incident and reduces bias and the need for body searches which often leads to the friction and anxiety caused by traditional metal detectors and their newer alternatives. Unlike Evolv, those other technologies simply alert when a potential threat/object goes through the system, leaving the security guard to conduct an assessment (sometimes full-body) to find the location of the potential threat and “yoyo” the person through the system several times. (“Yoyo” refers to a common security term for having an alerted person run through security screening several times until they no longer alarm.)   

We continue to hear from our customers about the positive impact adding Express to their safety plan has had on their school.  And we work with schools to overcome obstacles new technology might present, such as identifying ways to account for certain Chromebooks which may alert due to specific components of their design resembling a part of a weapon.   

“Evolv is the best that is out there for schools,” noted Mark Laurrie, Niagara Falls City School District Superintendent. “With these systems in place, we’re confident that we’re fostering the highest quality learning environment and safety of our students and employees while investing in technology that continues to get better.”  

And Atlanta Public Schools police Chief Ronald Applin has said the Evolv system is more efficient and less invasive than previous screening that has been in place at least since 2016 when he joined the district. 

Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools (CMS), one of the largest districts in the country, has increased its deployment of the Evolv Express systems to nearly 70 schools after experiencing a year of success with its initial rollout. CMS  Chief Operations Officer Brian Schultz explained how adding Express to its security approach has enabled a safer environment that lets teachers and students focus on education and build relationships that support better academic outcomes.  

Again, there is no perfect solution that will create a completely sterile environment and catch all weapons for schools or any venue.  This is why a layered approach of people, process, and technology is used in security planning and execution – and schools are no different. Our systems are stopping guns regularly from entering buildings where they should not be. And AI-weapons detection working in concert with schools to create safer environments is more than just deterrence and detection. It’s about setting a positive tone for a school community at the beginning of each day. It’s about stopping the weapons from coming in, but also bringing peace of mind so that students, teachers, staff, parents, and caregivers know they are safer. It’s about school communities connecting with each other, checking on each other, and working together to stop violence.    

A final thought 

Our mission at Evolv is to help make the world a safer place. That mission is central to why I joined the company; I have a daughter who is a second-grade teacher in the Boston public school system. When she told me that on the third day of every school year, she teaches her 8-year-old students to hide under a desk from an active shooter, it demonstrated the significant emotional toll our children must endure in what should be a safe place for learning. I worry every day as a father, businessman, and human being about this tragic reality. When I hear of something bad happening at a school, I pray that my daughter and her kids are safe.  

Working hand-and-hand with this team each and every day, I know that all Evolv employees hold the responsibility of school safety as our highest priority. We are deeply committed to our mission and grateful to partner with schools to help keep our children and teachers safe.   

In this third installment of our Q&A series with Jill Lemond, Evolv’s director of education, we talk about social and emotional learning, mental health and gun violence, and the real impact of weapons detection screening systems in schools.

Prior to joining Evolv, Jill spent 12 years as the assistant superintendent of safety and school operations at Oxford Community Schools in Oxford, Michigan.

Q. What are the hidden costs of feeling unsafe in the classroom?

A. We know from study after study that the perception – and reality – of unsafe school environments directly correlates with lower learning outcomes. When students feel safe at school, they are better able to focus on learning and have stronger academic outcomes. Likewise, teachers and staff cannot be as effective in their imperative roles if they do not feel safe.

Q. How does social and emotional health factor into school safety planning?

A. Social and emotional health is significant when it comes to school safety planning. We are amidst a post-pandemic mental health crisis in the United States and it is particularly impacting our youth. I encourage schools to take a closer look at the increased number of counseling referrals, students self-reporting anxiety and depression, and the rise in suicides and suicidal ideation in their own school communities. When they do this, they’ll find that the data speaks volumes. Now consider the rising number of counseling referrals, along with an increase in school shootings and a growing need for more teachers and mental health professionals, and you’ll see how it sets the stage for more tragedies. I don’t think it’s possible to look at the numbers and not see the connection between troubled students and school shootings.

As school administrators explore the numbers behind the counseling referrals, they should also try to get to the root cause of mental health concerns and factor in social and emotional well-being into the school’s strategic safety plans. While schools are doing what they can to help students, keeping up with the demand is proving to be more than challenging, especially as we see long-term impacts of COVID-19 on student development and learning.

Q. Can you comment on the rise in swatting – hoax emergency calls to the police reporting school shootings – and its impact on communities?

A. The rise in swatting is having a big impact. We know that over the past decade, the classroom has changed dramatically due to social media and students having phones. It’s now reached a point where it’s almost too easy to create mass havoc like swatting.

Today, the threat of violence and school shootings is ever-present as students and teachers are constantly thinking that at any moment they could go into a lockdown or have to quickly respond to an emergency. When there is a fake incident reported and their fears become a reality, it amplifies anxiety. As swatting increases throughout the country, fears and anxiety rise in schools and everybody in the building is on high alert. Once the report is proven false, is it really fair to expect that students and teachers will be able to focus on learning and teaching for the rest of the day?

To end swatting, we need to do a better job explaining its impact to students, letting them know how to anonymously report when they hear or see something, and communicating very clearly about increasingly tougher laws that are being put into place. Let’s not forget that swatting is illegal. I also think educational campaigns about swatting should include students; giving them a voice and asking for their help is likely to decrease the number of fake calls. There is nothing funny about instigating panic and trauma.

Q. What are your thoughts on communities raising concerns that installing weapons detection screening systems creates distractions for students?

A. The overall rise in school shootings across the country means students are already distracted by the potential threat of violence. Our children are aware of the gun violence epidemic in this country and, through technology, have greater access to information than any previous generation. Weapons detection screening systems do not create distractions. Instead, they actually have the opposite effect because they allow students to stop thinking about weapons once they’re in the building. I’ve personally heard from countless students that having a weapons detection screening system in school offers them peace of mind.

Q. How does the introduction of weapons detection screening impact students and teachers?

A. Overall, it has an enormously positive impact on students and staff. During the morning arrival, it creates an opportunity for staff and administrators to greet students and let them know how glad they are to see them at school. The new protocol improves safety along with boosting social and emotional learning by recognizing every student, especially those that may have previously felt left out or ignored. Also, since systems like Evolv Express® are not metal detectors, students do not have to break their stride or stand in long lines due to false alarms that lead to unnecessary bag checks. The benefit of using technology like Evolv is that it does the security work, allowing teachers and staff to focus on their strengths in connecting with every student while reminding them of how safe they are in the school environment.

Q. What are some best practices for introducing weapons detection screening systems into schools?

A. Everybody in education knows that we need to do everything we can to make school environments safe for learning. So when it comes to introducing weapons detection screening systems, it requires a community effort. As key stakeholders have more meaningful safety experiences at venues like stadiums and theaters, where weapons screening systems are prevalent, the introduction of those same systems in schools will be easier.

From the perspective of evaluating weapons detection screening systems, I encourage school districts, parents and other interested parties to comment throughout the process. I want to, especially and specifically, invite students into the evaluation process, as well. Ask difficult questions and raise concerns so they can be addressed at the earliest stages of the decision-making process.

Also, I think it’s important for schools to communicate that weapons detection screening systems are not a standalone answer to gun violence. They must be part of a larger emergency operations plan. That plan takes into account the perspectives of parents, students, teachers, staff, administrators and other key stakeholders. It also outlines what to do and who to contact in an emergency and prioritizes regular training and drills to ensure everybody in the building knows what to do in the event of an incident or the detection of a gun or other prohibited items.

Essentially, the #1 best practice for introducing weapons detection screening systems into schools is beginning with a strategic emergency operations plan that is an integrated, collaborative effort spanning the people, processes and technology responsible for school safety.

In the second installment of our series interviewing Jill Lemond, Evolv’s director of education, we discuss ways that schools can improve safety and security without having to invest tremendous financial resources. We also talk about the impact of technology to keep students safer, and how the school of the future may look as a result of the latest innovations. Prior to joining Evolv, Jill spent 12 years as the Assistant Superintendent of Safety and School Operations in Oxford Community Schools in Oxford, Michigan.

Q. When it comes to school safety planning, who should be involved?

A. The school safety team should include a multi-faceted group of stakeholders across elementary, middle and high schools, with representation from district administrators, principals, teachers, emergency responders, members of the local police and fire departments, and community members, such as coaches, that are directly involved with students, board members, and select parents. Also, student leaders should be involved based on their insight into the student body and knowledge of the buildings.

Once the team is assembled, you need to build meaningful connections with each member while ensuring everybody fully understands their role. For example, local first responders, police and fire should be invited to tour school buildings, given access to entrances, and provided maps with room numbers on them. It’s also important to designate a primary contact for communicating to parents, students and the community. School administrators need a dedicated point of contact within local law enforcement to ensure lawful and accurate communication in the event of a critical incident. When specific roles are mapped out in the planning process, it avoids unnecessary confusion and provides a more efficient approach to incident response.

Q. For schools with limited resources, what actions can they take to improve safety?

A. There are several free and low-cost actions schools can take to improve safety. They can start by regularly reviewing their emergency operations plan. Every school has one and it’s important to review them at least once a year, if not more frequently.

Another free resource for schools is the School Security Assessment Tool. The assessment module and related forms are available to complete and prompt meaningful discussions about safety. For example, the checklist asks important questions that may not immediately come to mind, such as whether there are boulders or other obstacles near the school that will prevent a car from entering. Active shooter drills are another free exercise that should be conducted on a regular basis. To prepare, schools can access one of the many free tools available online. As a reminder, the drills should be conducted in a way that is age appropriate and ensures everybody in the school—including substitute teachers, paraprofessionals, office staff, and food service personnel—knows what to do if an active shooter is in the classroom, hallway, cafeteria, or any other part of the building. There should also be a dedicated lead in every school district that is responsible for ensuring safety plans do not sit on the shelf and that training happens regularly.

While these are some of the free options available to schools, it really comes down to having a layered approach to school safety.

Q. What do you mean by having a layered approach to school safety?

A. A layered approach is one that looks at all facets of safety and recognizes that there’s no one single action you can take that will keep a school safe. Rather, it’s a series of small steps and big actions working together to protect everybody in the building. A layered approach combines people, training, technology, and the operational processes around each to ensure a cohesive plan for safety.

You can think about it in three tiers:

1. Prevention – The first is prevention and creating an atmosphere of safety through ongoing training, regular drills, taking advantage of the free resources available, and regularly refining safety plans. It can also include weapons detection screening solutions like Evolv Express®. The activities and plans put in place by the school should not be available to the general public. It also needs to include connecting with students and checking in regularly, especially those that may be overlooked or bullied.

2. Mitigation – The second tier is mitigation. The key stakeholders need to know how to identify and respond to threats. Those threats may be happening in person with physical weapons or verbally using threats of violence. They may also include online discussions that are overt threats. They may also be more subtle such as taking a closer look at the victim(s) of bullying.

3. Response & Communication – The third tier is all about response and communicating with students. It also factors in how to respond to parents, the community and other stakeholders in the event of an incident while taking steps to reduce future tragedies.

Q. As school gun violence continues to rise, school safety has become more complex. What have been the most impactful changes that you’ve seen over the course of your educational career?

A. I’d have to say the most impactful changes are the demand for improving school safety and the speed of technology innovation to do just that. The rise in school violence has reached epidemic proportions, and as a result, there has been a public outcry demanding we, as a society, do more and do better to protect our kids.

Along with continuously training and refining safety protocols and emergency operations plans, technology has made a significant difference. For example, schools are installing panic buttons in classrooms, using online tools like Gaggle to be alerted about potential threats and plans being discussed on social media, and setting up emergency messenger systems to instantly communicate an emergency throughout the building and to local law enforcement and first responders. All of these technology innovations make a difference in responding to incidents more quickly while also setting a tone for zero tolerance when it comes to school violence.

Q. How do you envision school safety changing in the next 3-5 years?

A. I think we’ll continue to see tech guiding safety response. Schools, and especially parents, will demand better ways to identify and address potential threats. As they see the increased use of non-threatening weapons screening systems like Evolv at public venues including stadiums, theaters and amusement parks, they’ll want the same safety and security measures in schools.

Also, as technology continues to offer increasingly more innovative ways to improve safety and protect schools, we’ll see those technologies become more integrated. For example, the ability to bring together weapons screening systems, artificial intelligence, cameras, automated locks, and mass notification systems will help identify and address threats sooner. Having some or all of these systems in place helps reduce anxiety and allows everybody to stay focused on learning.

You can read the first article in the series, “How to Engage and Include Students in School Safety,” here.