Ezzy Castro, Reporter
Published: August 13, 2019, 12:29 pm
Tags: Education, Local, Back To School, Seminole County, News
New application allows Seminole teachers to lock down school with push of button
Leaders address security changes in Seminole County schools
SANFORD, Fla. – Seminole County Public Schools officials and county leaders met Tuesday to discuss the latest additions and changes for school safety this year.
Superintendent Dr. Walt Griffin explained topics like mental health, social media and active security measures at all school campuses.
"We are celebrating our fourth year of having a school resource officer on each and every campus," Griffin said.
He also explained that students will not only see more school resource officers, but staff members will be able to respond to an emergency with a push of a button through an application called RAVE.
"We wanted them to have the ability to lock the school down, so our first technology we added was the RAVE soft panic button, which comes with a couple of mutual links," said Capt. Rick Francis, of the Seminole County Sheriff's Office.
Though the district said the first day of school went smoothly, the staff observed many students walking around with earbuds.
They want to make sure all students are aware of their surroundings and announcements in case of an emergency.
"We want all of our children to be able to hear any type of announcement we are making," Dr. Tina Calderone said.
In recent years, the district has invested in enhancing security at school building entrances, adding fencing and gates, new cameras and deploying other safety technology.
Authorities also addressed school threats and the consequences it could bring.
"Don't do it. Don't think that you can get away with it, because we will put you in jail," Seminole County Sheriff Dennis Lemma said.
Ezzy Castro
Ezzy Castro is a multimedia journalist on News 6's morning team who has a passion for telling the stories of the people in the Central Florida community.