The Campus Guardian Angel drones. Photo courtesy of Volusia County Schools
Sen. Tom Wright and Volusia County Schools Superintendent Dr. Carmen Balgobin. Photo courtesy of Volusia County Schools
Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood. Photo courtesy of Volusia County Schools
Justin Marston, CEO and founder of Campus Guardian Angel. Photo courtesy of Volusia County Schools
Superintendent Dr. Carmen Balgobin; Volusia County School Board Chair Ruben Colón; Volusia County Sheriff's Office Capt. Todd Smith, director of Safety and Security for Volusia County Schools; School Board member Jamie Haynes; and School Board member Jessie Thompson. Photo courtesy of Volusia County Schools
Volusia County Schools performed a live demonstration of its new drone-based safety system at Deltona High School on Friday, May 1, an event attended by state, local and law enforcement officials.
The demonstration of the safety system, coined Campus Guardian Angel, marked a "major milestone in Florida’s exploration of advanced technologies designed to protect students and staff during active-shooter incidents," according to a press release by the school district.
“In Volusia County, we have a priority that is part of our belief system: Every student and staff member deserves to feel safe and secure in their learning and working environment,” Superintendent Dr. Carmen Balgobin said during Friday’s press conference. “As we move forward in Volusia County, we have a commitment to every single one of you, to every parent, to every child, to every community member, to every business owner, to our legislators, we have a commitment, and that commitment is that each and every day we will strive and do everything in our power to ensure that every single family member feels safe within our school system and that they know our priority also is to ensure that their student receives a quality public education.”
The Campus Guardian Angel system was developed by Mithril Defense and is the result of a pilot program in the state; Volusia County is one of three school districts to participate in the initiative, which received $557,000 of funding from the Florida Legislature.
The Campus Guardian Angel System deploys non-lethal drones immediately after an emergency alert is triggered, according to the VCS press release. The drones then deliver real-time video to law enforcement and use deterrents such as sirens, flashing lights and pepper spray to disrupt potential threats.
The drones will be stored on campus and can reach any location in a school within 15 seconds.
Campus Guardian Angel is working closely with VCS, the Volusia Sheriff’s Office, and additional law enforcement partners to align the technology with established emergency procedures, the press release states.
“Quite frankly, this is the future,” Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood said.
Volusia County School Board Chair Ruben Colón said the superintendent, along with him and his fellow board members, believe that nothing is more important than students' safety.
“We are not waiting for a tragedy to define us; we are preventing it,” Colón said. “School safety isn’t just a policy here in Volusia County, it’s a promise, because every child who walks through our doors is someone’s whole world, and we treat them that way.”
