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Albany City School District outlines rollout for Albany High security upgrades after parent meetings
Summary
Superintendent described a December rollout of new security screening technology at Albany High School after three parent forums; staff said the system aims to speed entry and reduce bag searches, with five days of vendor training and privacy assurances that images will not be retained.
Superintendent Hockrider said the Albany City School District plans to begin testing new security screening technology at Albany High School in December after engaging parents in three meetings and a virtual forum. The district presented the system as a way to speed morning entry, reduce manual bag searches and better deploy security staff across the building.
The announcement follows outreach the district said drew about 20 parents. Hockrider said the rollout will include vendor calibration and about five days of intensive staff training before full implementation, and emphasized that the district is not retaining images from screenings. "The benefits of this process certainly is to make the morning entry more efficient," Hockrider said, adding that the technology should shorten wait times and allow hall monitors to be redeployed.
Board members and student representatives pressed staff on several operational details in a question‑and‑answer period. Student board members said they were supportive after the demonstrations: "We are absolutely excited to have this new implementation just to ensure that our school is safe and to ensure that our lines are efficient each and every day," student board member Carmen Santos said. Trustees asked whether screening would create excessive arrival delays; one trustee suggested students arrive by 8:15 to allow time for screening.
District staff said they are testing throughput and a second entrance to manage the approximately 2,700‑student building and will continue to consult with vendors on scalable configurations. Hockrider acknowledged concerns about false positives and staff responses, and said training will include guidance on de‑escalation and handling sensitive situations without embarrassment.
The board received the update as part of the superintendent's report and did not take a formal vote on technology selection at the meeting. The district posted an FAQ and the presentation materials on its website and said it will report back to the board after initial testing and the holiday break.
