By Barry H. Hendrix
Improvements to security in the Thomasville City Schools District were presented during the Nov. 21 meeting of the Thomasville City Board of Education meeting in the Thomasville High School Library.
Kate Huggins, Technology Director for the school district, gave a presentation.
A new Centegix system, a five-year commitment, will be installed by the beginning of the 2025-2026 school year. Each employee will have a wearable electronic badge, where they can push a button multiple times for different alerts including Lockdown, Medical, Physical Altercation and Weather notice. The badge will not need charging, Huggins said, and the badge will be replaced after three years. The security will be monitored remotely by the company.
The new security system will not be dependent on Wifi or Cellular, she said.
There will be visual alerts with strobe lights and on computer screens, and there will be audio alerts through intercom. Campus administration will be able to quickly see on a digital map, where the employee is who pushed the alert on their badge, she said. The police department will also be alerted regarding a Lockdown.
Visitors to the school will receive a badge, where their movements can be tracked.
There is also planned a new upgrade with Cisco intercoms and phone system, Huggins said. There are also plans for a new door locking safety system for campus doors. The school system has received a $68,000 cyber security grant, which will fund a Cisco “Duo” system to fight ransomware on computers.
In addition, the Thomasville school district is in compliance with the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA), Huggins said. The school system utilizes two software systems, I-Boss Cybersecurity and Securly, to be in compliance. I-Boss protects students from seeing harmful or obscene images on the Internet. Securly is an ad and website blocker.
By being in compliance, the school system receives E-Rate funding. Thomasville schools had received $209,092.35 in E-Rate funding for a five-year cycle ending with the 24-25 school year. The system is planning to replace part of the old communication infrastructure (network patch panels, ports, wall mounts, etc.) by awarding a $147,492.00 bid to Kam Technologies. That company is also installing the new phone system, Huggins said.
A bid will also be for new wiring and re-cabling, she said.
Huggins is being aided in these huge security projects by Ryan Anderson, system IT Specialist, and Adam Elliott, Safety and Family/Community Outreach Coordinator.
“There is a lot going on,” Huggins said. “It’s exciting - the things we have been able to do. We feel like when we go to bed at night, no matter what happens, we know we are keeping our kids as safe as humanly possible, whether it is on the Internet or lockdown. We are doing everything we can to keep our kids safe.”
In other action from the Nov. 21 meeting, Anjelica Gibson, Chief School Financial Officer, gave the financial reports for September 2024 and October 2024.
In September, payroll totaled $900,487.66, and accounts payable totaled $458,956.81. In October, payroll totaled $896,610.83, and accounts payable totaled $737,215.44.
• The following personnel actions were approved Nov. 21 by the Thomasville Board of Education:
(Resignations)
Korey Sims, Pre-K Auxiliary Teacher at Thomasville Elementary School;
Katherine Dumas, Child Nutrition Program (CNP) Manager at TES;
(Employment in Positions)
Chiquita Jackson, CNP Assistant at TES;
Crystal Rogers, CNP Assistant at Thomasville High School;
Michelle Dixon, CNP Assistant at TES;
Orlando Gildersleeve, History teacher at THS;
LaKendra H. Lucy, Clerical Aide at TES;
Chase Dunham, Substitute Bus Driver.
• The contract of Thomasville City School Superintendent Vickie Morris was renewed by the board.
• A change was made to the 24-25 Parent/Student Handbook regarding THS 9-12 Exams – Mid Terms (First Semester) and Finals in May can both be exempt.
• The next meeting of the school board will be a 5 p.m. on Dec. 10 in the THS library. The public is invited.