Anson County Board endorses Rave panic-button app after presentation and privacy questions

The Anson County Board of Education voted during its Dec. 11 meeting to endorse a Rave panic-button mobile app and to expedite district implementation following a vendor presentation and brief questions about privacy and scope.

Board Chair opened new business by asking for a motion “to endorse it and expedite its placement in our school system.” Ray, a representative of Rave, told the board the platform is provided free to schools in North Carolina, supports geofencing so notifications are limited to affected campuses and can be configured for districtwide access by staff such as school resource officers and transportation personnel. “It is a free service to all schools in in North Carolina,” Ray said during the presentation.

Board members pressed the vendor on technical details before the vote. One board member asked explicitly whether the app could access personal files on users’ phones: “Does that allow them to have personal data?” The vendor replied that he did not believe so but said staff would verify which phone features the app can access and how user privacy is protected.

The board first approved an amendment to the meeting agenda to add the Rave item, then voted by voice to endorse the program and authorize district staff to move forward with implementation, including geofencing the new middle school once it is added to the district inventory.

The vendor said the app can be set to notify only the staff associated with a specific campus and that district personnel who travel to multiple schools can be configured to receive broader notifications. He also noted the district’s mobile-app capability is one of the rubric items considered when applying for annual safety grant funding.

The endorsement directs staff to continue implementation planning and to return to the board with any necessary administrative details; the board did not request a roll-call vote. Before the motion carried, the district superintendent said staff would verify privacy protections and report back to the board.

Action at a glance: the board amended the agenda to add the Rave item, then endorsed the Rave panic-button app by voice vote and instructed staff to proceed with implementation planning.

The board’s next regular meeting date was set under the consent agenda and the meeting adjourned with holiday greetings.