Sonitrol of San Jose, Calif., and other companies join forces to donate more than 2,000 photo identi

After years of helping businesses and official buildings become safer environments, many companies within the security industry have taken creative steps toward education, hoping their products will help make schools safer and better organized. On June 24-27, Sonitrol, a division of Pacific West Security Inc. based in San Jose, Calif., sponsored the 64th Annual Leadership Conference of the National Association of Student Councils (NASC), held at Monta Vista High School in Cupertino, Calif. Manufacturers teamed with the alarm company to donate photo identification badges to more than 2,000 students who attended the conference.

“Because of the mobility of the things we booked in the program, we really had to have that visual identification, and having the students’ pictures on the badges was phenomenal,” says Joanne Laird, assistant principal at Monta Vista High School and co-chair of the student conference.        
Total costs of the project came out to approximately $30,000—a tab Sonitrol; New England Security and Communication (NESC), which donated the badges; Eltron Printers, which provided eight badge printers; and Vicinity Corp., which donated eight laptops for the badge software, picked up. “[The security companies’ help] was also something that really feasibly saved us,” Laird contends.

Within the past five years, schools across the United States have become more receptive to the idea of implementing the utilization of photo identification badges, not only for large events, but for regular day-to-day academic activities. The growing issue of school violence and security has prompted school administrators, teachers and parents to consider employing ID badge technology.

However, many schools are either kicking the idea of photo ID badges around or they are not well informed about the kinds of low-scale, yet high-tech, security measures that can be implemented on school grounds. That’s why manufacturers, dealers and other companies, have stepped forward to participate in events, such as the NASC conference, to show how their products can work effectively for schools, while providing a community service.

Sonitrol’s School Ties Prompt Badge Donation

Sonitrol became involved with the conference through Monta Vista High School, the company’s client since 1987. Since then, the high school’s security needs have been served through the company’s school security division, a group of security consultants and installers solely dedicated to attending and installing systems at schools.

Monta Vista Is Chosen as Host Site for 4-Day Event
 
Although Sonitrol’s involvement with the conference began in November 1999, Monta Vista had been preparing for the event since 1995, when the high school was chosen as the host site by the National Association Secondary School of Principals (NASSP), the parent arm of the National Association of Student Councils. Hundreds of Monta Vista students, teachers and community members also took part in the preparations. In fact, they raised more than $300,000 for the conference.

Companies Lend Helping Hand With Products

The conference was deemed a success, not just due to the number of student delegates, but also due to the photo ID badges and the helping hand from Sonitrol and NESC. The security products weren’t the only donations these companies made to the conference.

The Evolution, Revolution of Photo ID Badges

With the growing concern about school violence and security, more schools across the United States are implementing or seriously considering utilizing photo ID badges for faculty and students.

Badge Popularity Helps Develop School Security

Although schools on the East Coast may have started utilizing photo ID badges first, schools in the Midwest and West are following very closely behind, due to the fact that school violence and other acts of crime can now exist anywhere. Whether large or small, urban, suburban or rural, high schools, middle schools and elementary schools—even nursery schools—are beefing up their security measures.

Opportunities Abound in School Photo ID Market

Slowly but surely, school administrators are becoming more aware of the security products that can benefit school campuses. Many security companies send flyers and packets of information to schools; however, much of that literature is thrown out and labeled as junk mail.

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