The St. Vrain Valley School District Board of Education heard an update on safety and security in the district on Wednesday night.
Richard Peebles, executive director of safety and security, reported that the district has upgraded sites throughout the district to include the InformaCast Fusion system — a mass notification system that reaches people on mobile and on-premises devices.
The system upgrades include a 911 call aware feature that allows the district to pinpoint which classroom a 911 call came from.
According to Peebles, in the past, when a 911 was made from a classroom phone, it would be tracked to the school, not a classroom should the caller not be able to remain on the call.
The district also reviewed its AEDs, or automated external defibrillators, to determine the device’s longevity. The district found 21 devices to be replaced in the 2021-22 school year.
The review along with a change in vendor initiated the district to implement an end-of-life process to replace AEDs. The new vendor, AED Authority, saves the district 43% each month on the cost of the devices. The price reduction also expanded the purchase of more AEDs which are being added to elementary schools and to athletic fields across the district.
The district also continues to add cameras across the district for security including 10 at various schools, 10 camera upgrades installed and six new cameras at the Lashley Street building, according to the board packet.
Other security renovations include secure entry at Centennial and Columbine elementaries, a $250,000 upgrade to the AES radio system and fire and intrusion alarms and a $300,000 upgrade to replace fire and exit doors.
