Riverhead schools detail multi-year security upgrades, add staff and new technology

At the Riverhead Central School District board of education meeting on Aug. 20, district security staff reviewed a districtwide safety plan and outlined recent security investments, staffing increases and new technology intended to improve campus safety.

District security lead Terry Culhane told the board the district expanded its security staff from 19 guards in 2018 to 42 guards and added seven door monitors, upgraded camera systems and integrated emergency notification tools across buildings.

Culhane said the district has replaced or added "well over 200 cameras district wide," calibrated suspect-tracking features, installed about 118 card-access devices, and placed sensors on every exterior door — "over 483 to be exact" — so staff receive alerts when a door is opened. He described integration with a one‑button notification app that alerts first responders and activates on-site strobes and public-address messages. He also said the district installed license‑plate readers at high‑school lot entrances and added high‑security fencing behind the high school to address students leaving campus and trespassing near the adjacent mall.

Why it matters: Culhane described the upgrades as responses to operational gaps noted since 2018 and to incidents that included students leaving campus and safety‑critical medical and mental‑health responses. He stressed training and preventive measures, noting anonymous reporting tools and training for guards in CPR, "stop the bleed," and Narcan protocols.

Specific details included in the presentation: the district now has 42 guards and seven door monitors; over 200 cameras upgraded or added; two phases of high‑security fencing at the high school; vape detectors installed in student bathrooms at the high school and middle school; a Share It anonymous reporting app that Culhane said helped identify two students with imminent suicidal ideation; on‑site COVID testing for staff established during the pandemic and ongoing distribution of at‑home test kits; the Rave emergency‑notification app assigned to every employee; and completion of a security command center alongside replacement of obsolete video storage equipment.

Culhane summarized training and maintenance steps, saying he scheduled annual eight‑hour recertification training for all guards during superintendent conference days to avoid license lapses and described a districtwide mapping and servicing of fire‑alarm devices to reduce false alarms.

No formal board action was taken during the presentation; Culhane invited public comment and told the public that the districtwide safety plan is published on the district website and available for comment via email to his office.

"If anyone in the public, upon their review of the district wide safety plan, has any comments, please feel free to send those comments to my office via email," Culhane said. "These questions will be answered in a timely fashion."