District mulls pros, cons of surveillance
By PAMELA WILLIS
Published: Wednesday, December 3, 2008 9:06 AM EST
Worthington City School District administrators and board members continue to mull over a myriad of methods to enhance school safety, including the installation of surveillance cameras in district buildings.

Director of Student Services Jim McElligott said school board members asked for more information and more details on how security cameras might be used in the schools after the first reading of a new policy concerning the possible use of cameras at the Nov. 24 board meeting.

"We put together a committee of people that represented the certified and classified teachers' unions, along with administrators interested in school safety, to work through the big issues pertaining to surveillance cameras," McElligott said. "We met half a dozen times to discuss the issues and ended up putting our ideas in writing."

McElligott and Facilities Director Tim Gehring wrote the resulting document, called "Need for Enhancing Board Policy Pertaining to School Safety," which includes the section "Considerations for Electronic Surveillance in Schools." The document is posted on the district Web site, worthington.k12.oh.us.

The paper begins with the statement, "The nationwide concerns of terrorism, war and other world events have caused families to worry about security and the impacts on our schools.

"In speaking with security experts about the use of cameras in our school buildings, it has become quite apparent that our (board of education) policy needs to be updated to reflect the mandates from local, state and federal government agencies," states the document.

McElligott said new state mandates consider surveillance cameras a part of the package when building a school.

"Right now, any new construction in Ohio for schools has to have surveillance cameras installed as part of the building plan, according to the Ohio School Facilities Commission," he said. "Because cameras will be part of the safety equipment in new schools, the state is encouraging school systems to consider that kind of installation."

In the document, the committee recommends an "after-the-fact intervention" surveillance system, in which security cameras can be used to "reconstruct events."

Policy issues that should be considered, according to the paper, are:

* "Storage of images should be of short duration (seven days) and be secured so images cannot be transported and distributed among other people. Records should never be permanent. We need to define public access;

* Access to images should not be denied so as to advance the principle of fairness. The technology should serve the public interest and not simply the interests of those in power (staff and administration). Procedures should be developed to allow parents and students involved in a specific incident to review the videotape; and

* There are certain areas of the school that students and staff have an expectation of privacy, including the classroom, bathroom, locker room, offices, and conference and weight rooms. Cameras should not be placed in these areas."

The committee identified security goals or issues for Worthington schools, recommending school officials secure buildings 24 hours a day, including controlling and documenting who is coming and going and keeping cameras tuned on public and exterior areas of buildings.

The document also listed a few caveats when considering student and staff privacy.

"Constant surveillance can undermine human self-governance," the document states. "Actions have different meanings when they are done in front of an audience (camera). Modeling and teaching young people about character development (doing the right thing when no one is watching) is undermined if students are under constant surveillance ... surveillance in schools can inherently send a message to students and staff they are not to be trusted ... This is particularly troubling in an educational environment that demands transparency and trust."

McElligott said he believes the judicial use of cameras could enhance school safety.

"When you look at the pros and cons of security systems, using a surveillance system in moderation can have a positive effect in terms of school safety," he said. "If you use the surveillance system as an after-the-fact intervention tool, it gives you more eyes throughout the school building. I do think it would be a positive move for the school district."

The cost of widespread camera installation could be costly, however, McElligott said.

"We don't have the figures yet, but we're working with an engineering company to work up some numbers, beginning with determining the expense to put a surveillance system into our oldest high school, which is Thomas Worthington," he said. "But first we need board members to weigh in on a new surveillance policy."

Community members can provide feedback on the document and the idea of putting surveillance cameras in the schools by visiting the district Web site and following the link "contact us" or by writing an e-mail to McElligott at JMcElligott@worthington.k12.oh.us.

The next school board meeting will begin at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 8, at the Worthington Education Center, 200 E. Wilson Bridge Road.




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