School Entryway Management

Securing school entryways has always been a hot topic. It often gets brought up at school events, district meetings and as a security concern by parents. Ensuring that access is under control and up-to-date with the best safety and security protocols can be difficult due to factors like not enough room in the budget or not having enough staff available to handle the changing requirements.

Why Entryway Management Systems Are Important in Schools

Schools have a lot to think about with classroom planning and the added element of remote learning that is still in place for some students. The focus is usually on the classroom, and what can be done when the students and faculty are already on school grounds. But what about preventative measures right at the door? This is where entryway management systems offer an answer.

Entryway screening measures must be conducted. The effect of COVID-19 on the population has left schools desperately trying to find ways to get students back in and learning and protect them while they attend. There are a few signs that a school needs better entryway management. OneScreen has identified these signs and developed cutting edge technology to address these critical issues.

1. Unreliable Temperature Scanning  

Schools have had to make quick adaptations to national and local guidance on safety during the pandemic. These changes are not going away soon, though. The world is now more acutely aware of the danger of contagious diseases. In the rush to prepare schools to welcome back students, many schools chose to used manual, hand-held scanners that met the letter of the law but couldn’t provide truly accurate results. Beyond that essential failing, these devices require batteries and expose the person taking temperature scans to too much risk of infection. 

Automated entryway manager keeps nurses and security safe and scans more people in less time with a much higher degree of accuracy. In addition, unlike a school staff member with a manual device, automatic entryway managers are on job day and night, whenever someone seeks to enter the school grounds. 

Accuracy, reliability, speed, risk reduction and protecting school staff from exposure to infection are the top five reasons to upgrade a school’s temperature scanning hardware. 

2. Manual Mask Checks  

Similar to temperature checking, mask checking is done by teachers and personnel being vigilant and keeping an eye out for mandatory mask violators. When there are many students, teachers, staff and visitors to keep track of, this task becomes resource intensive. Just as with simple temperature scanning mentioned above, this also exposes nurses or security to possible infection at a time when they are needed most.   

A better way is an automated mask check on arrival. New technology can verify masks in less than a second and automatically open a door or turnstile for the person wearing a mask. If no mask is detected, an alert can go out to school staff to isolate this person or a message can be displayed showing where they can pick up a mask. With the latest advances, entryway managers can recognize the face of authorized personnel, even when they are wearing a mask.

When local guidelines change and masks are no longer required, it is simple to turn off this mask check using the central control panel. 

3. Cancelled Events  

Even before the current crisis, schools struggled with staffing events. The volume of  traffic combined with extra cautionary measures has meant that events often get cancelled. Entryway managers are versatile enough to adapt to the needs of schools as times change.

CDC guidelines currently call for anyone entering a school to answer specific questions about exposure to COVID-19 and any recent travel. After the pandemic is over, school events may still need to send questionnaires to anyone in attendance covering whether they read certain documents or need additional information. 

Schools may also need to keep track of data such as how many people attended an event and whether it was successful. Entryway managers are much more than temperature scanners. They put IT specialists in control of what to scan, who to notify, and how to best manage the data according to the unique needs of each school. 

4. A Lack of Data 

When a school uses manual devices to check temperatures, that data is lost immediately. If parents or administrators want to go back later and get precise data on temperature, time and location, there is a good chance that there is no record.

At best, this process is vastly inefficient. School staff are being redirected to tasks that are unfamiliar to them while it is taking time away from more productive, necessary tasks such as tending to student needs.

Having an entryway manager in place to monitor multiple entryways automatically keeps track of data for contract tracing and followup, while freeing up school staff to maintain their central roles. 

5. Lack of Technology  

School leaders are responsible for providing the best solution the district can afford to create a more effective learning environment. Fortunately, new funding has become available in the last year specifically to help schools upgrade their technology in response to COVID-19.

Long after the current pandemic is over, the funding available now will help propel the necessary technological upgrades that schools desperately need.

Entryway managers are the future, solving a host of problems at once. These devices assist in risk reduction, security and data management today. Tomorrow, these devices will evolve to handle whatever comes next as schools face new challenges. 

GoSafe Entryway Manager Eliminates Uncertainty

Each school has its own set of priorities and the GoSafe entryway management system is built to adapt. GoSafe can be mounted on walls, set up on a table top near the door or rest on top of its own floor stand. GoSafe is extremely portable and can be relocated easily, providing security and protection anywhere. 

When school leaders recognize any of the signs above, they don’t need to worry. The solution is already here.

GoSafe entryway manager is the only device with AI-enhanced Qualcomm technology on board to assure greater accuracy, speed, and data security. In less than one second, you will have reliable temperature scans, mask check and can even program in facial recognition for authorized teachers, staff and visitors.

Prescreen questions can be sent out by email, posted on your school’s website or displayed with a a QR code on the GoSafe device for instant responses.  

This technology will keep schools efficient and productive long after the current pandemic. As times change, GoSafe adapts to your needs. 

We invite you to set up a free personal online demo to learn more about how GoSafe can help your school, the funding coming to schools from the latest federal legislation, and purchasing options that reduces costs while ensuring that your school is always running on the most updated technology.