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SPRING CONFERENCE WRAP-UP

BY DON HARRIS
AASBO Members Are the Real

First Responders in a School Crisis

Mike Bradley

Actual rst responders at schools in case of a shooting or other on technology, look at your emergency response plan,” he said.
crisis include AASBO members, teachers and maybe even students “Spend the taxpayers’ money wisely.”
who could be in a position to act nearly 20 minutes before police He emphasized that IT must be involved in any emergency
arrive. planning. “If a lockdown is the only response to an active shooter
Aided by advances in technology, people on school property in schools, that does not meet federal and state guidelines,” Bradley
know almost as soon as an unacceptable event is taking place, said. “It’s no longer enough – sometimes it’s the wrong answer.
where it is, what it is, and what to do about it, according to Mike Schools have to have multiple response options. School safety and
Bradley, President/CEO of ECD Systems – ECD stands for E ective/ crisis management are achieved through layers and implemented
Connected/Dependable. based on the severity of the event.
During a breakout session at the AASBO Spring Conference For example, a low-level incident could involve a parent or
in Laughlin, Nevada, on April 5, Bradley told school employees: guardian trying to take possession of a child they don’t have a right
“ e reality is that the real rst responder – it’s not the police, not to have.
the SWAT team, not the re department. It’s you, the sta , the Outside security cameras should take in the perimeter, bus
teachers and in some cases the students. People on campus notice lanes, fencing, parking, doors and windows. Interior security
an incident rst.” should include cameras, and automatic locking hardware on doors
With that in mind and relying on technology to alert everyone and windows.
and automatically take safety-related action, Bradley said, “If Regarding the best form of mass communication to get the
we build a security system for an active shooter, we’ve covered word out that a crisis is occurring in a school, Bradley said, “ e
everything else – that’s the worst case scenario.” intercom is back – phone systems are not mass noti cation systems.
According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, as ey can’t do the job e ectively. ey have intercoms in hospitals
reported in Police Magazine, a school shooting incident lasts and grocery stores. ey have codes. If there’s a problem, people
an average of 12.5 minutes, and the average response time is 18 know what to do.”
minutes, Bradley said, adding that even if authorities arrive at the Technology is playing an increasing role in school safety, he said.
scene sooner there is still a gap when school personnel are without Today’s network provides the foundation to integrate technologies
police support. that directly impact safety and response. For example, technology
at’s where an emergency operations plan aligned with a
technology plan becomes critical, Bradley said. ere are about CONTINUED ON PAGE 17
100,000 K-12 public schools in the
country, about 40 percent
were built 40 years
ago, and more than
half need some
repairs. When
schools pass
bond issues,
they spend
the money
on such
things as
cameras and
to remodel
front offices as
part of a security upgrade,
Bradley said. “Any time you spend money

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