IP Cameras: Keeping an Eye on the Security of Our Schools

More than a year has passed since the senseless Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, and tragically,  details of new school shootings continue to pepper the news. It shocked many to turn on the news on January 14 and hear that a 12 year-old in Roswell, New Mexico, had brought a gun to school and wounded two of his classmates.

As a result of this alarming increase in shootings, school districts across the country  are assessing their existing security policies, and although there’s no way to absolutely, positively, protect their students from a random attack, IP cameras can give them a head start.

According to market research firm, IHS, more than $720 million will be spent on school security equipment in 2014, with IP video cameras accounting for the most purchases on through 2017.

Administrators look toward IP video to monitor real time day-to-day occurrences as well as the security afforded situational and perimeter awareness. The particular usage differs from school to school, and depending on where it resides on the K-12 spectrum.

What are they purchasing?

Since the lives of their students are on the line, most school systems are allotting a significant portion of their budgets to sophisticated IP camera systems consisting of

• ·         Outdoor PTZ & Vandal-resistant Dome Cameras
• ·         The Indoor Counterparts of the Above
• ·         Sophisticated Video Management Software
• ·         High-Resolution Viewing Monitors.

In the School Building

How are they using them?

Large School Districts

Many city school superintendents who oversee a multitude of schools are choosing large-scale IP camera enterprise systems  to connect the entire district, with each school building comprising an Ethernet hub, and connecting with other hubs via the Internet or a WAN.

Small Districts

Rural districts or small city districts sometimes have only three buildings to secure, an elementary, middle, and high school. In such cases each building can be outfitted with their own independent network of cameras controlled by Video Management Software (VMS). 

Save for inter-connectivity, they will have the same features the enterprise systems have. And should a forensic need arise,  VMS can be used to sort through the  recorded video and forward applicable images  to the main district office or the police department.

Where are they mounting cameras ?

Mounting points will vary according to building type and whether the school is in a urban, suburban, or rural area, but a few locations are common.

Entrances and Main Office

Many schools are choosing to lock all their entrances once classes have started and designating one entrance through which visitors can report, gaining entrance only after presenting verifiable photo identification. An IP camera, placed in such an area, can serve not only to deter intruders but also to verify that the receptionist or guard posted there is following security protocol.

Hallways

Many schools use a mix of fixed position and pan, tilt, zoom (PTZ)  cameras for monitoring movement during the day. PTZ cameras can move vertically, horizontally, and if needed zoom in optically to give a closer view.

PTZ camera

They can be controlled using either a web browser or the Internet, or programmed with VMS in patrol mode to step through preset positions. When classes are in session and the halls are empty, a camera can spot an intruder and follow his progress while security responds.

 Between classes, when middle and high school students pass through the halls and congregate at lockers, the cameras can alert security and administrators to drug use, bullying, or gang activities.

Gymnasiums and Cafeterias

In wide open areas  like gyms and lunch rooms, the  ratio of students to supervisory personnel tends to be poor, at best. PTZ cameras in discrete vandal proof domes areas are an excellent discrete way to detecting bullying and the potential for fights, enabling a quick response.

Restrooms

It’s not uncommon for threats to be found on restroom walls or bomb threats to pinpoint bathrooms. They are also a location where bullying can take place. Obviously a respect for privacy rules out the presence of IP cameras in restrooms but cameras mounted outside the entrance can provide forensic help in case of an investigation.

Laboratories and Shop Classrooms

Areas such as chemistry labs, welding areas, and wood-working and automotive shops can be dangerous. Surveillance cameras can be helpful in providing video to detect unsafe practices in . They can also monitor computer labs where theft can be a concern.

On School Grounds

Districts in suburban areas are turning to outdoor cameras with environmental domes to protect them from the elements.

environmental dome

Day/night cameras provide 24 hour surveillance and cut costs, operating in color mode during daylight hours and automatically transition to more light-sensitive monochrome at night. Employing these dual mode cameras cuts in half not only the number of cameras needed but the number of domes as well

Most schools  find that  high-speed, high-resolution PTZ cameras to be effective in monitoring their campuses and parking lots where cameras can be programmed to perform a predetermined guard tour, panning from one area to another.  Should any suspicious goings-on be detected, the camera send an alert to the security officer on duty who can then zoom in, still the frame, and if necessary, take appropriate action.

Parking Lots

Rooftops are a favorite place for mounting IP cameras. They’re safer from vandalism, plus from this vantage, a PTZ camera has an unobstructed view

Pick-up and Drop-off Areas

Virtually every district has implemented highly structured security policies regarding exactly who is authorized to pick up students. Surveillance video along the pick-up line can provide the best of forensic details should a child go missing....... 

......or an accident occur.

Kintronics has outfitted schools all over the world with IP cameras, IP based access controls and PA over IP.  If you’d like information, call and speak to a sales engineer at 914-944-3425 or you can fill  out an information request form and someone will get back to you.