Taking the first steps to improve the district’s security system, the Warren Township High School District 121 Board of Education Tuesday approved a new door-access system.
The district’s current door-access system has been discontinued by its vendor, so the system had to be replaced during this current fiscal year in order to ensure that the district’s doors are secure during the 2023-2024 school year.
After being approved at the meeting, the new system is set to be completely in place by the end of April.
The district looked at options from three different vendors over a four-month span, ultimately selecting a five-year system from Verkada, a California-based software company, which was the middle option in terms of pricing.
The system from Verkada will cost the district approximately $96,000, and the district has already allocated funding for the system from its most recent bond restructuring. A “proof of concept” from Verkada was installed in the district’s O’Plaine campus over winter break, and worked “flawlessly,” according to assistant superintendent of instructional services Christopher Geocaris.
With the new system, the district will be able to continue to utilize its door readers and key fobs, but will also be able to implement Bluetooth readers, available through a mobile device app, which would allow staff members to enter the building with their mobile devices.
Geocaris said that the district wants to begin “leveraging current technology” to keep its systems up to date, including using mobile technology like the Bluetooth readers.
“We want to make sure that we’re leveraging mobile technology,” he said. “Currently, we’re not able to use mobile devices to activate systems.”
By adding new key fob readers throughout the school’s two campuses, the new door system that was approved by the board expands on the district’s current system, according to Geocaris.
The door system replacement is the first of many steps the district plans to take in order to fully update its security system. The district plans to implement the updates over three years in phases, with the door system being the first phase.
“Currently we have multiple systems,” Geocaris said. “Right now, there’s limited integration between those systems. They’re more technical, and not as user-friendly as they could be. We want to start to integrate all of our systems under one umbrella.”
The second phase will be an upgrade to the district’s video surveillance system, which district officials plan to address during the 2024 fiscal year. Phase three, which will be undertaken in 2025, would consist of reevaluating the district’s visitor screening process, as well as its mass notification system.
