High School District to Pump $600k into Smarter Surveillance System

The board of a California school system has approved funding to replace legacy security camera gear. West Sonoma County Union High School District awarded the $602,948 contract to Integrated Security Controls, a regional solution provider.

According to local reporting, the Santa Rosa company will be installing 96 cameras at three high schools, Analy, El Molino and Laguna, as well as software with analytics that will enable administrators to view what's happening at their schools.

During the meeting where the approval was given, facilities manager Jennie Bruneman told the board that the previous camera system was "very difficult to use," forcing users to manually look through footage to find what they needed. With the new equipment, users will be able to search on specific details — "a student wearing a ball cap and a red shirt" — and the analytics will identify that individual as he or she moves around the campus.

The Integrated Security solution was chosen after a pilot project that tested two companies' systems. The specific equipment being installed comes from Avigilon, a Motorola Solutions company.

The camera installation is expected to be done by the end of September, Bruneman told the board.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • Missouri K–12 District Cuts Ribbons on Two New Middle Schools

    Springfield Public Schools in Springfield, Mo., recently celebrated the completion of two new middle school facilities with ribbon-cutting ceremonies, according to a district news release. The district officially opened the new Pipkin Middle School and Reed Academy on Sept. 3, both of which were funded through the $220-million Proposition S bond program approved by voters in 2023.

  • University of Rochester to Break Ground on New Student Life Center

    The University of Rochester in Rochester, N.Y., recently began construction on a new Student Life building, according to a news release. The first floor will contain campus-wide gathering, program, and rehearsal space; the second floor will play home to the Greenbaum Center for Jewish Life.

  • TCU Marks Campus Expansion Milestone

    Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas, recently held a topping-out ceremony to mark progress on a major campus expansion effort including four new residential facilities and a five-story parking garage, according to a news release.

  • Q&A: How to Prevent Kitchen Grease Fires in Commercial Kitchens

    School cafeterias and university dining halls serve thousands of meals daily, relying on high-heat equipment like fryers, grills, and ovens. While these operations keep students fed, they also generate significant grease-laden vapors. Without proper controls, this grease becomes a silent fire threat. As a certified exhaust cleaning specialist and business coach who has helped hundreds of institutional facilities achieve NFPA 96 compliance, I emphasize that proactive grease management isn’t optional; it’s a core fire/life safety practice.