You have named security systems for
educational facilities an important new trend.
What are colleges and universities doing to
makes their campuses safer?
Higher education facilities have begun to expand and
modernize their video surveillance systems. They
now place greater quantity of cameras in pedestrian
and vehicle pathways, gathering spots and cash
handling areas. Furthermore, many colleges and
universities now use cloud-based camera systems for
the instant identification of license plates and faces.
Some other new safety methods are access control
remote lockdowns to help secure classrooms during
active shooter events. Mass notification of students
and staff via mobile phones and loudspeakers and the
integration of disparate campus systems.
What are some of obstacles schools face in
enhancing their security systems?
Schools face security obstacles both new and
old. Budget concerns are not new, what is recent
is that costs now come from large volume data
storage, network device upgrades and bandwidth
improvements like fiber optic cables.
Most schools often have wide-spread locations
and occupied spaces that cannot be disturbed for a
good part of the year, which complicates installation.
There’s also that slippery slope of electing device
coverage only to quickly have to add more once
attention is brought to areas not covered.
Finally, schools operate by department and it’s
possible to have so called “silos” between these
departments, where surveillance information is not
shared. Multiple departments also means multiple
operators, each possibly with their own agenda or
lack of clear, central coordination between them.
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