Faculty, staff, and students’ safety is of paramount concern for all educational systems. Although high-profile threats to safety capture national media attention, daily threats to safety such as altercations, vandalism, health incidents, and other issues must be part of a holistic safety strategy.

On Teaching Matters’ November 27th episode A School Safety Tool, Stacey Locke, Deputy Superintendent of Yakima (WA) Schools, discusses how CENTEGIX CrisisAlert wearable panic buttons have been integrated into that district’s safety plan—a strategy that had payoff only 24-hours after implementation. Fair warning, during our interview Stacey received an alert that one of the elementary schools was placed on lockdown—thankfully, that lockdown was a drill, though it provided us with immediate insight on how the system promotes rapid communication and reaction.

Listen to the episode on NPR now →