Schools in Pennsylvania were the latest targeted by so-called swatting. Computer-generated calls on Wednesday made claims about active shooters, but it was all a hoax. One day earlier, nearly 30 Massachusetts schools received fake threats.
From active shooter emergencies to extreme weather events, the need for advanced school safety technology has never been greater and the stakes have never been higher.
Cullman City Schools Superintendent Kyle Kalhoff said the system "can make a difference between life or death in the unimaginable school shooter situation."
Moves to private schools, homeschooling, and a reduction in the school-age population, are a few of the factors behind the pandemic-driven declines. But that's not the whole story.
Swatting hoaxes this week led police to crash their cruiser through one school's front door while Vermont's governor likened the deeply disruptive pranks to terrorism.
New data from the National Center for Education Statistics reveal that an overwhelming majority of schools have extensive security measures in place. For example, at schools with a full- or part-time SLEO or SRO, 92% of them routinely carry a firearm.
When a shooting happens, sensors turn red or green. Red means you don't want to go in that direction because the shooter has been detected. Green indicates a pathway to safety.
A disturbing trend is causing disruptions of school life across the country, forcing lockdowns and straining police resources, sowing fear and confusion among students, parents and educators, and tormenting already anxious communities.
