THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT
Lincoln schools getting high-tech when it comes to safety with new mobile app
Among the many aspects of being prepared in the terrifying event of an active-shooter situation at a school, questions arise about rapid response and communication. How would teachers and students who flee the building alert everyone who may be concerned of their safety? What happens if so many people are calling 911 that the principal is jammed up on the phone line?
By piloting the I'm Safe for Schools mobile app in Lincoln public schools, Lincoln Police Captain Philip Gould is hoping to assuage some of these concerns.
“This is all about saving time, and saving time can translate to saving lives,” he told a group of more than 75 teachers he was training.
Lincoln Central Elementary and Northern Lincoln Elementary teachers gathered at Central after school on Wednesday for the fourth and final training of teachers in the district. Lincoln police in the last month held trainings with teachers from Lonsdale and Saylesville elementary schools, Lincoln Middle School and Lincoln High School.
By using the app to input information about their whereabouts and status, teachers send notifications to administrators and Lincoln police. Information would show up on a principal's phone, iPad and desktop computer.
Gould hopes to go live with the app in a few weeks, and he stressed to the teachers: If you happen to get an alert before then, disregard it.
On Wednesday, Gould walked the teachers gathered in the cafeteria through the setup and functions of the app. To start, teachers input their name and phone number, and then they scan a QR code to enter the Lincoln system.
The screen then shows four options, each on a background of a different bright color. The choices are: “We're okay,” “Danger nearby,” “Send help” and “Out of room.”
Gould showed on a projector a dashboard displaying all of the teachers' names. When he instructed the teachers to tap, “We're okay,” a corresponding icon appeared next to each of their names. The dashboard refreshes every 30 seconds.
He then asked one teacher at each table in the room to hit, “Send help.” In the event of an active shooter, police could see – via a floor plan of the affected building on the app – the locations of the teachers who need help.
Hitting the button also cues up a text box, if the teacher wishes to provide more information.
“You can customize your message, so if Johnny Smith's dad is in the parking lot with a gun, you can put that information in the message,” Gould said. Police can also use the app to send messages to teachers.
Teachers who flee the building can use the app to alert police where they are, and police can view locations on an aerial satellite map within the app.
Gould assured the teachers, “You're not getting tracked. This is not made to track teachers.” He also noted that it's up to teachers if they want to turn off location tracking on their phone once they leave school every day, and that nobody can force them to use the app.
Use of the app as a tracking device was a concern that made second-grade teacher Alesandra Pina “half and half” on the app at the beginning of the presentation. But she came away with the view that “it serves the purpose of: Where are we? Are we safe? Do we need help?”
Kindergarten teacher Roberta McLear said she thinks the app is a great idea, though there may be some kinks to work out. She noted it could be especially useful at Lincoln Central Elementary, where the classrooms don't have phones, only buttons to call the main office.
When the app is rolled out in Lincoln, it will initially be only for the event of an active shooter.
“If there's a kid with a nosebleed or a fight between two small kids, you still go through the traditional sources,” Gould said. But he hopes that down the road, the app could be used not only for active-shooter situations but also for other serious emergencies.
An example he cited was if there is a home invasion happening near a school and police don't want people outside.
Gould first heard about I'm Safe for Schools about two years ago, when he was sitting in with Police Chief Brian Sullivan on an online demonstration for the app. He reached out to app co-founder Jim McDonnell, suggested some improvements and got into a months-long dialogue about bringing the app to Lincoln Public Schools.
While the app is used in the Midwest, Gould said, Lincoln is the first district in the New England to try it out.
“We are letting the bad guys, wherever they are, think twice about messing with Lincoln Public Schools,” Gould said.