New physical security technology to keep students and staff safe
Boost school safety with innovative video surveillance and access control systems.
Monitoring all corners of educational facilities and safeguarding students and school staff is no small task. Limited resources and unpredictable incidents can take a toll on your school’s security posture. So, where do you even start?
The right solution begins with a culture shift. Ask yourself:
- Are school security teams equipped with the right resources?
- Are they shifting the culture toward unification and prevention?
It’s easy to get stuck on the details, and that can mean missing the big picture. Instead, taking a more global approach to school safety, risk detection, and investigations can help address what caused the problem in the first place. How? By unifying access control, video management, forensic search, intrusion monitoring, automation, and many other advanced security capabilities.
GUIDE
Top 4 school security challenges
Today’s schools face countless safety and security challenges. Whether it’s a small budget, infrastructure that can’t keep up, or outdated technology, there’s always something getting in the way of ensuring comprehensive school security.
Here’s a quick look at some of the hurdles:
- 60% of North American K-12 schools don’t have security personnel on school premises
- IT departments are understaffed, causing delays in system updates and maintenance
- Aging infrastructure makes it difficult to integrate new physical security solutions
- Outdated technology and legacy systems pose significant risks to student and staff safety
WEBINAR
Taking the guesswork out of investigations has been incredibly helpful. The first month we deployed Genetec™, we had a student go missing. Several students had denied ever seeing or speaking with the missing student, but because we had video, we were able to track every hour of that day and locate the missing student.
– Melissa Tebbenkamp, Director of Instructional Technology, Raytown Quality Schools
CUSTOMER STORY
24/7 video management for total visibility
It’s not easy to keep an eye on every corner with just cameras alone. A modern video management system can deliver 24/7, high-quality surveillance that ensures:
- High-risk or traffic areas stay in full view
- Unguarded sides in school sand camera tampering are identified promptly
- Video analytics speed up investigations—going from hours to minutes
Video analytics can give school security teams and staff a huge efficiency boost. For example, if someone crosses a barrier or unusual activity is detected, intelligent video analytics can alert school staff quickly. This allows them to respond before the situation escalates.
While operators are busy handling other tasks, video analytics work in the background silently. They can streamline searches, detect potential fights, and even trigger alerts for anomalies like unusual sounds or movement near sensitive areas.
Advanced video analytics can also help ensure that individual identities are protected, pixelating or redacting video footage. This strengthens compliance with privacy laws such as The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), which is is a federal law in the United States that affords parents the right to have access to their children’s education records, the right to have these records amended, and to have some control over the disclosure of personally identifiable information from the education record.
The bottom line? Modern video surveillance in education and K-12 schools is all about eliminating uncertainties, giving you a complete view of your school environment.
CHECKLIST
Boosted decision-making
Effective communication is critical to both education and school safety. There’s no room for guesswork when your school cameras are picking up on an active incident or overcrowding. Investing in a decision management system alongside video analytics solutions lets your team focus on what’s important.
Imagine being able to link your intercom systems to automated alerts. Or triggering geo-located incidents from a mobile app to alert your security team if they’re on the field. This lets administrators get more out of their school cameras and alarm systems. They get real-time guidance at their fingertips—whether it’s a conflict in a corridor or unexpected activity at an entrance.
With the ability to resolve threats before they turn into crises, you can encourage a culture shift toward prevention.
BLUEPRINT
A single, controlled point of access
Did you know that you can centrally monitor your school’s major access points through a single system? A unified school security solution can help:
- Enhance safety by preventing unauthorized entry and breaches
- Watch every door with integrated access control and video analytics
- Automate lockdown configurations on schedule
Let’s say someone breaches a designated entry point. The security system gets to work and instantly alerts staff. It can even trigger the lights or school intercom announcements to deter intrusion and secure the area.
EBOOK
Open and deployable in the cloud
K-12 schools deserve open security solutions that adapt to their unique needs. For many in education that can mean a physical security system that is deployable in the cloud. Or even a hybrid-could solution that works with their existing hardware and cameras.
How can my school benefit from a full cloud deployment?
- Enhanced cybersecurity with built-in protections and automatic updates
- Access to the latest technology innovations instantly with no manual updates
- Backed up recordings off-site for added security and reliability
- Reduced hardware needs with a low to no hardware footprint
- Eliminate the need to have someone provide regular maintenance
- Use of Software as a Service (SaaS) for a more flexible and scalable solution
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A school’s security needs don’t have to be locked to a single vendor either. With an open ecosystem of technology partners, security teams are free to swap or add new technology as needed.
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Setting global standards
A holistic security solution goes beyond your local context. Prevention has global implications. Your school can set new standards for safety by:
✓ Unifying cameras, access control, and intrusion detection
✓ Staying connected with a centralized, mobile-friendly solution
✓ Adapting to an evolving security landscape and new technology
When you partner with Genetec, you gain more than just a video management solution. We’ll keep innovating and collaborating with you so that your team will always have the best and latest tools.
Protect what matters most: The safety of students, school staff, and parents.
