The Orange County School Board authorized the division to enter a contract for a rapid‑response notification and visitor‑management system following a yearlong vetting process prompted in part by an incident at Orange Elementary.

Justin Sarver presented the recommendation and described the system as a wearable‑lanyard alert that triggers mapped notifications, strobes and audible alarms and contacts the county 911 center immediately. “This takes all of the thought out of declaring an emergency,” Sarver said, adding the technology will shorten notification time in medical and security incidents and display exact locations of alerts on a building map.

Sarver said the recommended vendor was identified after the division vetted multiple vendors, and that the product was proprietary and would be procured as a sole‑source purchase. He provided a cost overview on the record: a stated initial equipment/design fee described as a one‑time startup cost ($46,000) and an ongoing annual service fee ($87,000 per year). Board members discussed layered security options, including weapons detection and camera overlays, but supported adding the rapid‑notification layer.

A board member moved to authorize entering into a contract for the rapid‑notification, visitor management and related programming; the board approved the motion by voice vote. Administration said it will continue to pursue funding alternatives but will cover the initial year’s cost from transportation savings in the current budget.

The authorization directs staff to finalize procurement and implement the system as described; the vendor name was discussed in the presentation as “Syntegix,” while the motion and subsequent minutes name the product/contract using the Centetrix identifier. The board authorized moving forward with the vendor contract as presented.