One valuable aspect of the Bearacade® is the External Notification Panel™. Once deployed a student, teacher, administrator, or resource officer can quickly realize it is in place. In addition to guiding administrators, resource officers, and first responders, we did not want a secret or hidden device for this exact concern. Statistically, a student or staff member is more likely to be a victim of abuse, assault, bullying, or harassment. We don’t want to solve one issue and enable a handful more safety concerns.
An added design consideration for our team was that Bearacade® will only work on doors pre-selected by your administration and only in the correct direction way. The doorway preparation ensures this occurs. We did not want such a portable solution that a device from one room could be put in place on the outside of another room to trap individuals.
Upon introduction of our solution, we recommend taking the time to discuss its purpose and the ramifications and penalties for misuse, abuse, tampering, or disabling a Bearacade® or B2™. This is a good time to explain the recommended amendment to your Student or Employee Handbook associated with adding these devices to your safety equipment.
- A Bearacade cannot be deployed secretly. The unit cannot be put in place without the external notification. This serves the purposes of quicker identification of the room status during an actual lockdown or drill – but, just as importantly, immediate alert of deployment or misuse during normal operations.
- The unit’s location on the door is precisely known. There is no wonder or attempt to figure out where it is on the door.
- Every building receives two Defaulting Blades and as many as your local safety forces would like. Access can be gained in 30 to 45 seconds.
- If someone is counting on our unit as their sole means to hold a room hostage, access can be achieved.
- While the release takes a little time, we didn’t want an easy or immediate release. Over time and practice drills, students will realize that pressing a button or deactivating with a coat hanger renders the entire concept of sheltering in place and blockading useless if a barricade is easily defaulted.
Now, consider a secret element or someone creating their own makeshift blockade:
- You might not know for an extended period of time
- You might not know precisely where on the door
- You may or may not have a way to gain entry
Of the more than 200,000 classrooms with Bearacade to date, we have not had one unit misused. This is due to our in-service training, recommended ways to introduce into a classroom, and penalties outlined for misuse in both handbooks/code of conduct and misdemeanor law. It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be prepared for any circumstance.
Lastly, when we set out to make Bearacade following our school shooting in 2012, we incorporated fire, building, ADA, bullying, assault, harassment, and misuse concerns BEFORE we continued with a lightweight, simple, and super strong unit. We certainly don’t want to make a classroom less safe and are extremely careful about what we introduce to any office or classroom.
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Montgomery County Crime Stoppers, Inc. (dba Multi County Crime Stoppers), is partnering with local residents and community organizations to raise the funding needed to deploy the Bearacade system in our public schools located in the counties of San Jacinto, Liberty, and Montgomery Counties, Texas. Installation of initial pilot programs has begun in the Cleveland ISD, Tarkington ISD and Splendora ISD with 1000 Bearacade Door Control Systems. Crime Stoppers Coordinator, Specialist Steven Squier, MCSO and Chief Rex Evans of the Cleveland ISD Police Department spearheaded this project.