Teachers at Mableton school equipped with mobile panic buttons for quick emergency response

November 8, 2023 | Jerry Carnes - 11Alive - Atlanta

ATLANTA — A smartphone app aims to make pressing the panic button in the classroom easier for teachers across the US, and in Georgia, a Mableton school has adopted the system.

At the Kids R Kids Learning Academy, teachers like Nailah Browder have been drilled on what to do if their routine is interrupted by an intruder.

“We have safe zones where we can hide so nobody can see us,” Browder said. “The kids know what to do.”

There are panic buttons around the building, and now, thanks to new technology, teachers keep one with them at all times.

SaferWatch is a smartphone app that allows teachers to alert school administrators and emergency dispatchers to a problem. With the push of a button, the app can help teachers describe an emergency and send pictures, all without saying a word.

“Let’s say there’s an emergency situation where you’re afraid to be heard,” Shanna Ritch, Director of the Mableton Kids R Kids, said. “It allows you to push that button, and 911 is contacted.

SaferWatch tells first responders who are using the app and exactly where they are.

“If we’re in a closet or hidden under something or somewhere in a bathroom, they’ll find us,” Browder said.

There are at least four mobile panic buttons available for download. Around 5,000 schools, churches, government buildings, and community centers nationwide use SaferWatch.

Next year, the Georgia legislature plans to consider a bill requiring schools to have a mobile panic alert system. Florida and New Jersey have already passed similar legislation.

This means that Kids R Kids is ahead of the curve, arming their teachers with an emergency system they can hold in the palm of their hand.

“We just want to keep up with technology and offer the safest solutions for our students and teachers,” Ritch said.

Source: https://www.11alive.com/article/news/education/mableton-school-georgia-smartphone-saferwatch-panic-emergency/85-163e0bf9-bf96-47ae-a96b-27a8dfbbc913

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