Harrisburg School District

The challenge

One of the fastest growing districts in the upper Midwest of the United States, Harrisburg in South Dakota educates almost 4000 students across eight schools. Essential to providing an optimum learning environment for students is ensuring their safety and security - a responsibility the district of Harrisburg takes extremely seriously. Key to this was partnering with a security solutions provider that understood the specific needs of educational institutions, with the flexibility to employ customized features tailored to Harrisburg's particular requirements. The system needed to be fully integrated, scalable and expandable, digitally based, user-friendly and to assist and not replace, existing manual security procedures.

The Gallagher solution

Gallagher and South Dakota based Integrated Technology & Security partnered for the installation of Harrisburg districts security solution. Since its introduction, the system has been under continual expansion. Gallagher Command Centre provides enterprise level lockdown controls that limit access to buildings, control fire doors, and send notifications while providing an audit trail and video alerts. Features of the upgraded security solution include intercom/phone and Outlook calendar integrations to control doors from a desktop icon or smartphone and enable scheduling of access; strobe light control to provide lockdown notifications in hearing impaired areas; and intercom integration for lockdown announcements.

The business value

In October 2015, security measures were put to the test when the local high school was the target of a shooting. The incident resulted in one staff member being injured but was prevented from escalating further due to Command Centre being activated by staff. From the time the emergency button was pressed, it took just four seconds for Command Centre to lock all outside doors, notify district authorities, and limit building access to emergency responders only. At a time when concern over campus security is rising, the benefits of an advanced, interactive security network to protect faculty, staff and students is essential, and in some cases, lifesaving.