The state is providing funding for all K-12 schools in Louisiana to begin using the RAVE Mobile Safety App that will better alert authorities to emergencies on K-12 campuses.
“Today we are taking a step forward in making our schools safer with technology that will dramatically improve reporting and response times for teachers and other educators who face emergency situations while in their classrooms,” Gov. John Bel Edwards said. “While we hope and pray that the safety of our children and their teachers is never compromised, it’s our hope that this technology will assist in protecting our schools.”
Edwards joined Louisiana State Police Superintendent Col. Kevin Reeves at Neville High School in Monroe, Louisiana today to make the announcement.
Rave Mobile Safety will provide the Rave Panic Button app to all schools that will allow teachers to quickly request immediate assistance from law enforcement or other first responders in the event of a health or safety emergency in their classroom.
This is funded with $4 million included in the state’s FY 20 budget. The app will begin to be deployed to schools across the state this fall.
“The progress that Louisiana is making to improve the safety and security of our students, faculty and staff are the direct results of the vision and leadership of Governor Edwards in creating the Blue Ribbon Commission,” stated Colonel Kevin Reeves, State Police Superintendent. “I am extremely proud of the work of my fellow Commission members including our parish and local law enforcement partners and the efforts of the men and women of the Louisiana State Police that helped bring this technology to Louisiana.”
“As tragedies at schools have escalated, leaders in education, law enforcement, and emergency response have collaborated to strengthen preparedness and crisis management,” said Louisiana Superintendent of Education John White. “Among those efforts, we have explored the use of new technologies, like the mobile app announced today, that may prove beneficial in quickly and effectively responding to an on-site emergency. Every child and every educator deserves to feel safe in their classrooms, and it’s our duty to put into place every measure to ensure that’s possible.”
The Rave Panic Button is a smart phone app designed to speed emergency response by alerting authorities when there is a medical emergency, a fire, an active shooter or another crisis. When a teacher, administrator or staff member activates the button, it simultaneously places a 911 call to dispatch help while delivering immediate notification of the type and location of the emergency to other school employees and first responders.
This type of coordination further enables schools to respond to emergencies more quickly. The state will cover the cost of the technology for all schools in Louisiana, including charter schools, either as their first line of communications or to work in hand with solutions individual school systems already have in place.
“As a school district, the first and foremost requirement we have is to work to ensure safety for all our students, faculty, and staff,” said Dr. Brent Vidrine, the Superintendent of Monroe City Schools. “This App is one more tool to help our school district be pro-active in working to ensure safer schools for all of our students and adults on campus.”
