It's now been six months since the recent Uvalde shooting, which was just the latest in the series of 35 school shootings that have taken place so far (as of Oct. 11, 2022), resulting in 30 deaths and 79 people injured.
The rise in school deaths and violence is mind-numbing, but states and districts are becoming more proactive in their efforts to stem the continuing rise of school threats and emergencies. One example is the new grant programs for schools to purchase silent panic alert technologies that schools can use to signal a life-threatening situation or emergency--such as an active shooter, intruder, or other incident requiring a response from law enforcement and/or other first responders.
A Panic Alert System — sometimes called a "panic button" — is a simple, intuitive, and turnkey application used by school and workplace staff to instantly alert and request help from colleagues and/or 911 emergency assistance.
Approved users can access the Panic Alert System on their mobile phone or desktop. Individuals can request assistance with the touch of a button - sending the emergency type and location to colleagues and/or 911 responders. Administrators can quickly and easily send teams — and emergency responders — custom alerts and preloaded response plans based on incident type.
A Panic Alert System simplifies your emergency response planning and creates more optimal outcomes in the event of an emergency. Here are four steps to integrating your Panic Alert System with your safety planning. Many of these steps involve streamlined communications for faster, more impactful responses.
Anonymous Reporting Systems (ARS) empower individuals to report safety and misconduct concerns BEFORE they escalate into a crisis. This powerful tool provides a mobile app, website, and telephone hotline for users to gather and submit actionable information, including screenshots, photos, audio, and videos, to intervene and get help for individuals who may want to hurt themselves or others.
A 24/7/365 Incident Response Center with certified specialists monitor, manage and notify officials and 911 (as needed) of submitted incidents. When needed for any life-threatening situations, the specialists alert assigned officials via escalation email, text, and phone calls.
Some solutions, like STOPit's Anonymous Reporting System, will connect students or staff with a crisis counselor 24/7 using text or Facebook messenger. A live-trained crisis counselor receives the text and responds from the ARS platform. Counselors are trained to help move individuals from a hot to a cool place
The system documents steps taken when an incident is submitted and captures all responses, actions, and plans. This documentation allows you to reference, track, and/or gather inputs to comply with your organization, state, and federal policies.
In any school crisis, time is of the essence. With no time to waste, your technology should make reporting, alerts and notifications, collaboration, and communication as easy, fast, and accurate as possible. An all-in-one, mobile-first technology for panic alerts, communication, emergency management, and incident resolution systems can provide a comprehensive solution with the flexibility to meet your district's needs.