RF Technologies to Safeguard Staff and Students, De-escalate Altercations

RF Technologies, a provider of active radio frequency identification (RFID) safety and security solutions, has partnered with WIU Crossroads School in safeguarding its staff and students with the use of Help Alert Mobile Staff Duress Solution. The AEDY (Alternative Education for Disruptive Youth) environment of Crossroads School heightens the potential for disorderly or sometimes violent behavior that could require intervention by professionals trained in the de-escalation of disruptive and potentially dangerous episodes. By wearing mobile, wireless Help Alert pendants, staff can silently and discreetly summon immediate assistance in the event of verbal or physical conflicts, medical emergencies and/or other situations that require additional staff intervention–simply with the press of a panic button.

According to Nicholas Falcon, Principal of WIU Crossroads School, “Help Alert has provided our teachers and staff with an effective means of immediately communicating their need for assistance. Alerts yield a greater staff presence in areas experiencing conflict; therefore, students are deterred from inappropriate behavior.” He added, “When we talk about logistically trying to communicate a need from a classroom, I would say we’ve cut that down to seconds where it used to be minutes.”

Several mobile emergency call systems were evaluated by Crossroads School. Help Alert was selected because there was no need to add costly infrastructure. The solution utilized the school’s existing Wi-Fi network and access points for location calculation. Help Alert’s battery-powered, Wi-Fi based reference tags were added to supplement in areas where enhanced location accuracy was desirable. Working seamlessly within the school’s existing Wi-Fi infrastructure, Help Alert was able to provide a high level of location accuracy.