Below see an excerpt from Baltimore County News.
Integrated Video and Electronic Door Locks Facilitate Cohesive Public Safety Response
Technology and public safety took center stage today on the final day of American Education Week as Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz highlighted the $13.6 million in school security upgrades his administration has invested since 2011.
Baltimore County Police Chief Terrence Sheridan and Baltimore County Public Schools (BCPS) Chief Administrative and Operating Officer Kevin Smith joined the County Executive at Southwest Academy in Gwynn Oak to assert the value of their school safety partnership; including collaborative training and operations; and unprecedented investments in integrated security video technology, secure door access and school bus GPS technology.
“Thanks to our $1.3 billion Schools for Our Future program, we are creating modern, healthy learning environments for students all around Baltimore County, and a critical element in our investment is in ensuring that all of our schoolhouses are safe places for students and staff,” said Kamenetz.
“Safe, secure schools are of the utmost importance and these technology investments make sense in today’s world,” said Baltimore County Council Chair Tom Quirk.
Security Cameras and Card Reader Door Locks Now Installed in all County Schools
Since 2011, the Kamenetz administration has invested $13.6 million to safeguard schools by installing security cameras and card reader door locks in all Baltimore County elementary schools and enhancing these security measures in middle and high schools. This funding initiative increased the number of school cameras by 400%, from 1,150 to 4,600; newly installing them in all elementary schools, and enhancing existing cameras and adding them as needed in middle and high schools. In the same time frame, the number of card reader door locks in schools more than doubled from 261 to 583, providing an important measure of security for routine schooldays as well as in emergencies.
Integrated Video Dashboard Offers Police Real-Time Situational Awareness
The County is now completing the installation of video dashboard technology that provides public safety officials with instant access to video feeds from security cameras at schools, libraries and other public facilities; as well giving them direct access to live traffic cameras on state highways. GPS systems are now installed in County school buses through a partnership between County government and Baltimore County Public Schools.
Today’s event included a demonstration by a Baltimore County police officer of the video dashboard technology that provides responding officers with immediate, unfiltered situational awareness information when responding to an incident at a school.
Read more about how Vidsys’ technology is being used by Baltimore County to create a safer community here.
