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Plymouth‑Canton presents $5M safety upgrades and new weapon‑detection pilots; officials warn funding could be cut

Plymouth-Canton Community Schools Board of Education · January 14, 2026
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Summary

District Director of School Safety Josh Meyer outlined more than $5 million in recent safety and security investments, a staffed security operations center, AI-enabled camera monitoring, weapon‑detection pilots with Motorola and Evolve, and ECHO K9 deployment. Meyer warned the district may need to scale back systems if state school‑aid security funding is reduced.

Josh Meyer, director of school safety and security for Plymouth‑Canton Community Schools, told the board the district has invested more than $5,000,000 in safety and security enhancements over the past three years and is piloting new detection technology to reduce threats at schools.

Meyer described a fully staffed Security Operations Center that monitors building lockdowns, cameras, radio communications and mass notifications, and an integration with CrisisGo called “Smart EOC” that would allow opt‑in emergency alerts to students and families. “We really focus strongly on the outcomes,” Meyer said, and, he added, “we’ve made over $5,000,000 in investments in safety and security enhancements over the course of the last 3 years.”

On weapon detection, Meyer said the district has worked with Motorola to beta‑test visible firearm detection systems and will soon test an evolved concealed‑weapon detector that lets people walk through with items in their pockets. He also described a separate gunshot‑detection system and said testing with Canton Police is planned during PD days. “We’ve been working with Motorola to beta test the system for a little over a year now,” Meyer said; he said live‑fire exercises were used in testing and that administrators continue to refine notification processes.

Meyer highlighted ECHO, the district’s trained detection dog, as both a detection asset and a support animal for students. He said ECHO was requested 72 times last year by other districts and conducted six public demonstrations; in training scenarios ECHO successfully signaled the presence of a firearm during bag searches.

Board members pressed Meyer for measurable outcomes. Meyer said disciplinary and threat volumes have decreased in several areas (notably vaping and some athletic‑event incidents), though he did not provide a comprehensive incident count: “I don’t have an exact number,” he said, while describing observed declines in fights at football games and in bathroom incidents after procedural changes.

Several trustees and citizens asked about the sustainability of these systems. Meyer warned that the district relies in part on state school‑aid security funding and grants and said a loss of that funding could force the district to 'brown out' some security measures: “Without that funding, I’m concerned ... that we could be browning out certain security measures that we put in place simply because we cannot afford to maintain them,” he said.

Meyer also reviewed partnerships with local law enforcement, diversion programs for student incidents and the status of memoranda of understanding (MOUs) with municipalities. He said Canton Township dispatch is now interoperable with the district SOC and that discussions continue with the City of Plymouth. On diversion, he said most school‑property criminal referrals are routed to local diversion programs when families consent.

The board did not take formal action on the presentation; questions moved into subsequent agenda items. The district said it will continue to seek grant funding and legislative support to sustain its security footprint.