AR 3515

Business and Noninstructional Operations

 

Campus Security

 

The Superintendent of designee shall ensure that campus security procedures are developed that are consistent with the goals and objectives of the District’s comprehensive safety plan and site-level safety plans.

 

These procedures shall include strategies and methods to:

 

1.         Secure the campus perimeter and school facilities in order to prevent criminal activity.  These strategies shall include an analysis of the building security system lighting system, and campus fencing.  Procedures to ensure unobstructed views and eliminate blind spots caused by doorways and landscaping shall also be considered.  In addition, parking lot design may be studied, including methods to discourage through traffic.

 

2.         Secure buildings from outsiders and discourage trespassing.  These procedures should include requiring visitor registration, requiring staff and student identification tags, and patrolling places used for congregating loitering.

 

3.         Discourage vandalism and graffiti.  These methods may include plans to immediately cover graffiti as well as campus beautification projects and shall also include students and the community in these projects.

 

4.         Control access to keys and other school inventory.

 

5.         Detect and intervene with school crime.  These procedures may include the creation of a school watch program, an anonymous crime reporting system, analysis of school crime incidents, and collaboration and communication with local law enforcement agencies.

 

All staff shall receive training in building and grounds security procedures.  These procedures shall be regularly reviewed and updated in order to reflect changed circumstances and to assess progress in achieving safe school objectives.

 

Keys

 

All keys used in the District shall be the responsibility of the Director or designee.  Keys shall be issued only to those employees who regularly need a key in order to carry out normal activities of their position.

 

The person issued a key shall be responsible for its safekeeping.  If a key is lost, the person responsible shall report the loss to the Director and Business Office immediately and shall pay for a replacement key.

 

The Director or designee shall create a key control system with a record of each key assigned and room(s) or building(s) which the key opens.

 

Keys shall be used only by authorized employees and shall never be loaned to students.

 

The master key shall not be loaned and the duplication of District keys is prohibited.

 

Video Camera Security

 

The Metropolitan Education District authorizes the use of campus security cameras as recording devices on District property in order to ensure the health, welfare and safety of all staff, students and visitors to District property and to safeguard district facilities and equipment. Security cameras may be used in locations as deemed appropriate by the Superintendent.

 

Security Camera Operation

 

Security cameras may be used in buildings and in exterior areas including but not limited to parking lots, building and facility perimeters and entrance and exit doors. Security cameras equipment will primarily be installed on outside grounds but may include some interior hallway areas as appropriate.

 

Equipment will not record in areas where the public and employees have a reasonable expectation of privacy such as inside locker rooms and staff and student restrooms. There will be no security camera recording inside classrooms. Every effort will be made to avoid continuous video imaging of an employee work station. Audio recording will not be a function of the security camera system.

 

The facility will have posted signs informing students, staff and visitors that the buildings and grounds may be recorded by security cameras.

 

The use of security camera and recording equipment shall be supervised and controlled by the site principal/director and/or by District office administration, who may also designate other site administrators to operate the system and manage video files.

 

The security camera system is not intended to be monitored on a continuous real-time basis, nor is it intended to substitute for direct supervision.  There are no video monitors for public viewing.

 

Staff and students are prohibited from unauthorized use, tampering with, or otherwise interfering with the security camera system or equipment and will be subject to appropriate disciplinary action for doing so.

 

The District shall provide reasonable safeguards, including but not limited to, password protection, network security, firewalls, and control of physical access to protect the monitoring system from vandals and unauthorized users.

 

The regulations shall be incorporated into training and orientation programs. The regulations should be reviewed and updated on a regular basis.

 

Video camera recording and files:

 

Video files will be stored for a minimum of 10 calendar days, after which the oldest files are overwritten by newer files. The video files are stored in digital format on appropriate servers and not stored on video tape.

 

Video files may be viewed, copied and distributed by public safety agencies, and District security/fire staff and retained as necessary and retained as part of a student’s behavioral record in accordance with established District procedures.  Video files may be distributed to, copied by and viewed by administrative, security and safety staff in the course of an investigation of a safety or security event.

 

Video files copies will be distributed to law enforcement and public safety agencies when subpoenaed. Video files will not be copied, distributed or viewed by other persons not referenced above except when authorized by law enforcement or court order.

 

 

LEGAL REFERENCE:

            Education Code

            32020                         Access gates

            32211                         Threatened disruption or interference with classes

            35294-35294.5         School safety plans

39670-39675            Security patrols

Penal Code

469                                   Authorized making, duplicating or possession of key to public buildings

626-626.10                    Disruption of schools

 

 

Adopted:  9/10/97

Revised:  6/13/07