Behind a closed door in the administrative area of North Bergen High School sits a huge monitor, upon which are displayed dozens of images from throughout the building and vicinity.
The same images can be viewed by the police in real time at the town’s CCTV monitoring center, or even on handheld devices by school personnel.
A similar scenario applies to all the schools in the district. It’s all part of a $1.4 million effort to keep the school children of North Bergen safe and protected.
“Every time the school system can add a layer of security, whether it’s identification cards or uniforms or cameras, it only helps to increase the level of safety on the campus so that eventually they can meet their real goal, which is to give the best learning environment the students can possibly receive,” said Police Chief Robert Dowd.
As an example, “We had an incident last year where a woman came in demanding that her child was assaulted, and when we went to the video, we found out that her child was actually the aggressor,” said Dowd. “We got a girl who pulled the fire alarm too. It was clear she was the one who pulled the fire alarm.”
From analog to digital
The district first installed cameras in the high school about 12 years ago, at a time when thefts from lockers were common. Initially 65 or so cameras went into the hallways and were eventually increased to nearly l00. The cameras were low-resolution, with grainy images stored on clunky videotapes. Still, they served their purpose.
“As soon as word got around that we arrested people who stole things out of lockers, it was unbelievable how the thefts stopped,” recalled Superintendent of Schools Dr. George Solter. “The other thing was fighting in the hallway between students. We were able to see how the fight started so we were able to discipline appropriately. So the safety of the kids was greatly improved.”
Some incidents were caught even with the previous generation of equipment. “The old cameras were replaced entirely,” said School Business Administrator Steve Somick.
“It really was a win-win. We got the security and we also upgraded the technology for the future testing for the kids.” –Steve Somick
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The new cameras have the ability to zoom and pan, with infrared cameras outdoors for surveilling the building exteriors at night. “I was amazed when I saw the clarity of the cameras,” said Solter.
Boosting tech at the schools
Altogether a total of 225 cameras are being installed in the school system. The program is funded largely by a grant from the School Development Authority (SDA), which is paying 60 percent of the cost. The remainder comes from the local Board of Education budget.
Most of the cameras are already in place, having been installed over the summer. The rest are in the process of going up, with completion expected by the first week of October.
The system also upgrades the technology from DVR recording (the successor to the original videotapes) to a web-based program.
“It’s all done online,” said Solter. “That’s the beauty of the new system. Now as an administrator I can log on with an iPad and see what’s going on.”
Better yet, the grant allowed the school system to enhance their technology for student usage. “The way the cameras are wired, they’re also pre-wiring everything for the PARCC test,” said Somick, referring to requirements of the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, mandating that student testing be done using computers.
“Through this grant and through this project we put WiFi in every classroom, in every hallway,” said Somick. “It was all one package. Because to get that infrastructure for the cameras we needed the technology. It really was a win-win. We got the security and we also upgraded the technology for the future testing for the kids.”
Bandwidths were upgraded and many additional contact points added for WiFi, allowing for full wireless coverage throughout the schools.
Feeling safer
Reaction from the students has been very positive, according to High School Principal Paschal “Pat” Tennaro. “It gives a sense of security as far as the students’ safety. They’re aware that they’re constantly being supervised visually so if someone does bother them, they don’t have to respond. They can come down here and report it.”
Parents were equally pleased with the new system. “I had an orientation meeting with freshman parents at the end of August,” said Tennaro. “They were very positive about it. It’s a difficult thing when you send your kids from a neighborhood school to a larger high school. I know I would worry if I was a parent that worked in the city. What’s going on in the school? So this gives them a feeling of more security. Everything is on camera. It’s like having a security system in your home.”
“I think this generation almost expects this,” said Chief Dowd. “They grew up with it. It’s a ubiquitous thing – surveillance and technology. They almost expect it. Sometimes people will say you don’t need this, and there shouldn’t be a police officer in schools. We’re not looking to militarize schools but by the same token we’re looking to be responsible. And it would be foolish not to pursue a grant like this. It’s going to benefit the students big-time. And the faculty.”
The police CCTV center already monitors 114 cameras around town. The new school cameras will be accessible through the same system.
“Will we be watching every single school all the time? No,” said Dowd. “But if there is a dance at the high school, a basketball game, we’ll absolutely be able to monitor it. Also if, God forbid, an incident happens while the school is populated, this can be used to look inside, or for post investigations.”
And the police will be better prepared when they do respond. “When an alarm goes off in the middle of the night, the police can look in the hallways prior to arriving,” said Dowd. “We’ll be able to measure our response. What’s the appropriate response when we go there? Is it something one officer can handle? Or is this a serious situation where we want to send several?”
Best of all, the cameras should prevent incidents before they happen. “It’s a $1.4M deterrent,” said Somick.
Art Schwartz may be reached at arts@hudsonreporter.com.