Security cameras link schools to police departments
By Ellie Ashford
02/08 -- Security cameras have long been a staple of school security programs, but now a growing number of districts are installing cameras that are linked over the Internet with local police departments, giving law enforcement real-time access to various school locations.
So-called Internet Protocol (IP) cameras “have proved to be effective in some areas,” particularly in deterring vandalism and graffiti and identifying people who have committed crimes, such as computer theft, said William Modzeleski, associate assistant deputy secretary for the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools at the U.S. Department of Education.
They’ve also been helpful in reducing claims against schools. Modzeleski said there have been cases where students have accused school staff of assaulting or abusing them as they’ve entered a school’s metal detector, and video recordings have proven otherwise.
The Pelham, N.H., school board approved a plan last summer to install security cameras linked to the police department “basically to alleviate vandalism,” said school board Chair Bruce Couture. The local police association will pay for half of the $22,000 system, and a federal grant from the Department of Justice covers the rest.
The Demarest school district in Bergen County, N.J., has installed 25 IP cameras in the main halls, cafeterias, gyms, media centers, and exterior locations at its three schools, said Superintendent Lawrence Hughes.
The police department already had squad cars equipped with Internet capability, so it was easy to link the schools’ cameras to the police department. Now, Hughes said, “one police officer can see what is going on at 25 different places at once, without getting out of his car.” The police monitors can be set to show up to 16 images on the screen at one time.
The small Demarest district does not have a particular problem with violence or vandalism, Hughes said, but wanted to take a proactive approach. “We were more concerned when school was not in session, when all kinds of groups are using the facilities.”
Hughes hopes cameras don’t have to be used for documenting violence. Their main value lies in deterrence, he said. “If people know there is surveillance, and don’t commit crimes, then they are worthwhile.”
School boards considering purchasing one of these systems should first “carry out a risk assessment and identify their vulnerabilities and top priorities,” Modzeleski said. A decision on cameras “should be part of a comprehensive approach to creating safe schools.”
Kenneth S. Trump, president of National School Safety and Security Services, a consulting firm based in Cleveland, agreed that IP cameras can be helpful “if viewed as a supplement to, but not as a substitute for, a more comprehensive school security strategy.”
Because of time and manpower constraints, neither school personnel nor police officers are likely to monitor the cameras at all hours of the day and night, Trump said. “Law enforcement most likely would use remote access to school cameras in a tactical response to a reported threatening situation at a school, which could range from an irate parent or trespasser to an active shooter situation.”
According to Trump, “The first and best line of defense will always be a well-trained and highly alert school staff and student body.”
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