Buffalo Public Schools demonstrates new walkthrough weapons detection system at I-Prep

The entry process was quicker than wanding, the previous security strategy that led to complaints from parents about their children missing class time. On Friday, students walked between two pillars as sensors scanned them and their belongings, sending a real-time report to a security guard monitoring a tablet just feet away.

To signal a potential threatening weapon, lights on both sides of the pillars blinked red, and looping video on the tablet showed specifically the area of concern. Any student triggering a red light would be sent to an adjacent table for a secondary search. 

The initial response to the product – which also uses artificial intelligence – was positive, according to several district administrators who attended the demonstration.

"The students didn't seem to be jarred or nervous about it – you just walk through," said Tonja M. Williams, the district superintendent.

"The wanding process was something we implemented to bring safety, but it was an intrusive process and did not allow for great human connection, and it was manpower- and time-consuming," said David Hills, Buffalo Schools' chief operating officer.

Williams echoed Hills on the social-emotional impact of the new system and said its installation could be a launching pad for improved academics across the district. 

"That's when you begin to see academic achievement soar, when folks come in and they feel comfortable and they feel safe," the superintendent said. "I didn't want something that would be hardened or make students feel like they were going through something that would be frightening to them."

Hills added that the new system was set to its highest security level – "F" in an A-F scale – and flashed red for nonthreatening items such as umbrellas and laptops. The testing process Friday and next week at I-Prep will help determine the appropriate security level, he said. McKinley will be the second school to have its weapons detection system installed. Once high schools are fully equipped by the end of February, the next two phases will be the district's K-8 schools and central offices, such as information technology, registration and special education buildings. 

The new measure comes in response to recent incidents of weapons that were brought to school.

The district's new chief of security, former Buffalo Police Department Deputy Commissioner Barbara Lark, was on hand for the media gathering. She said the system should operate similarly to the Transportation Security Administration system familiar to air travelers, and that students will grow accustomed to putting items like laptops and umbrellas in a bin and retrieving them after walking through the scanner. There were calls of "Don't forget your laptop!" during the debut Friday, but officials said a routine for students would eventually set in.

Williams said nearly all students entering schools each morning do not represent a threat, but one small lapse could prove costly.

"That 1% could disrupt everything," she said, later adding: "It's unfortunate that it's the times that we live in."