NASHVILLE — Attendees to ESX 2018 will be invited to channel their inner artiste and participate in an interactive mural project on the exhibition floor, June 20-21, as part of the “#PassionateSecurity in Schools” initiative.
Security professionals and other industry stakeholders will paint a three-part mural that ESX will then donate to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. On Feb. 14, 17 people — fourteen students and three staff members — were fatally shot by a 19-year-old gunman in one of the nation’s deadliest school massacres.
The planned artwork is intended to stimulate an environment of creativity, positive energy and safety that encourages students to explore and express themselves.
As a result of many recent tragedies, school security and safety have taken a prominent role in public discourse surrounding school shootings. The growing issues faced by school systems across the nation are being confronted by activists, leaders and victims of the tragic incidents.
“School districts around the country are looking for expertise in assessing security threats and to address the shortfalls in their current security infrastructure, planning and budgeting,” says Ryan Petty, an experienced telecom and technology professional who lost his daughter, Alaina, in the Parkland shooting.
Petty, an advocate for improving school safety through community action and public policy, continues: “We’ve seen a groundswell of interest in enhancing school security in the wake of the Parkland tragedy. There is a flurry of activity in the public sector on school safety, and in particular the use of security technology to protect students and teachers during class time. We need experienced security professionals to be a part of that conversation.”
As a group of individuals and companies with unique qualifications to help improve and strengthen school security, the electronic security and life-safety industry has an opportunity to make a difference, according to an ESX press release.
Artwork on the mural will be designed before the show, and attendees will each put their own touch on the painting, adding color together throughout the two days the ESX expo is open.
Off the expo floor, a Closing Keynote Luncheon will include perspectives from Petty, as well as an end user and integrator of security solutions. The panel will discuss practical ways integrators can strategize with schools and universities to take a multifaceted approach to ensure safety and peace of mind for children, educators and parents.
Through this initiative, ESX organizers hope attendees will leave better equipped and inspired to make a difference in communities across the nation, displaying #PassionateSecurity far beyond the event, the press release states.
