JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- At a time when budgets are tight, $344,000 sounds like a lot of money to spend on new dispatch equipment. But the Duval County School District says you can't put a price on student safety.
On Tuesday night, the school board approved the purchase of the upgraded critical communications equipment. It will provide the capability to respond to security and safety requests directly with the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office and other first responders.
"If we have a lockdown situation at one school or something else is going on, being able to call directly into them and find out what's going on and relay back to our schools is really important," says Paul Soares, Chief Officer of Operations Support for Duval County schools.
The school resource officers currently use dispatch equipment provided by JSO. But the equipment is outdated. Schools cannot communicate directly with other first responders.
"It's going to make our schools safer," says Soares.
He adds that the upgrade is required by the state and federal government to be done by August.
