Schools' New Security Rules for Visitors Start Tuesday

Darien Public Schools administration has posteed this announcement on the school district's website on new rules for visiting schools, starting Tuesday:

The Darien Public Schools will feature a new visitor management system beginning on Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2013. Visitors who wish to enter school buildings will be requested to scan their photo identification and receive a visitor's badge.

This is part of a new security clearance system aimed at making our schools safer for students and staff.It offers us a high-tech way of keeping track of who is in our buildingsat any time and is useful in cases of emergency.

The system, which is being rolled out to all school buildings, will instantly scan visitors’ driver licenses and state ID cards and cross-check the information with a sex-offender registry, family watchdog (www.familywatchdog.us).

Visitors who presenttheir identifications will be issued temporary photo ID badges. The badges print in about 25seconds and indicate which area of the school they may enter.

The system will not check additional criminal databases, so it will not indicate whether individuals have outstanding warrants or other legal issues.The ID badges will identify wearers as visitors or contractors.

Each badge will expire within a 24 hour period and must be returned to the security desk upon exiting the building. Contractors, regular volunteers and other frequent visitors can be issued badges for long-term use.

Campus Monitors at each of the buildings have been trained in the use of the system andwill be prepared to answer any questions and/or assist visitors as they enter our school buildings.

We thank the public in advance for their cooperation as we continue our efforts to ensure the safety of our students and staff.