Merced City trustees approve five‑year Syntegix safety platform over push for a pilot, 3–2

Merced City School District trustees voted 3–2 on Feb. 10 to approve a five‑year contract to deploy the Syntegix wearable safety badge and integrated incident‑management platform districtwide, approving the proposal after hours of questions about costs, pilot testing and staff buy‑in.

Deputy Superintendent Francisco Romo and Executive Officer of Human Resources Tamara Ferreiro presented the plan to the board, saying the investment would provide a districtwide, 24/7 wearable device that staff could use to summon help and that the platform can integrate with cameras, PA systems and local law enforcement alerting. Romo told trustees the district would use braided funding from ELOP, Measure M and the general fund and described a five‑year investment “approximately $1,300,000.” He said Year 1 implementation and setup would be in the presentation figures and that ongoing annual costs for years 2–5 would be lower.

Ferreiro described the badges and the intended coverage, saying they would be issued to substitutes and staff working on campuses. "All staff will be issued these safety badges, including MCTA, CSEA, management, and nonrepresented staff," she said during the presentation.

Trustees pressed staff and the vendor on operational details. Trustee McCutcheon said she was not comfortable authorizing a five‑year contract without a pilot and testing against other options: "I wish that we could have piloted this company along with another company ... to actually see the response on everything," she said. Trustee Delgado echoed concerns about locking the district into a long contract as technology and needs change.

A vendor representative described how the badges work in practice, explaining two principal activations: "You press it 3 times. Help is coming," the representative said, and an 8‑click activation can trigger a lockdown. The representative also said the product can map staff movement, integrate camera feeds on demand and provide a district‑level dashboard for transportation incidents.

Board members also asked about radios, training and data privacy. Several trustees stressed that Syntegix would not replace radios; rather, it was intended to work alongside them. Trustee Clark Brooks raised the point that radios remain necessary for two‑way communication and asked how administrators would determine the severity of an incident when a simple three‑click alert could cover several scenarios.

Staff provided a funding breakdown shown on slides during the meeting: presenters cited an approximate Year 1 implementation cost shown as $541,720, ongoing annual costs of about $197,750 for years 2–5, and a slide listing funding allocations of ELOP $553,125; Measure M $227,020; and general fund $652,575. Presenters described a turnkey installation model to reduce staff workload and an implementation timeline of roughly 120 days.

After roughly an hour of questions and responses from staff and the vendor, Trustee Jeong moved to approve the recommendation. The motion passed on a roll call vote with three yeses and two nays; Trustee Delgado and Trustee McCutcheon voted no. The board recorded the motion as passed.

The district will now begin contract implementation and onboarding steps as outlined in the presentation. Board members who voted no asked district staff to return with a report on pilot results, staff training completion and any camera/integration configurations, and the board requested periodic updates on program use and incident data.

The vote marks a substantial investment by Merced City School District in an integrated safety system, but trustees who opposed the measure signaled they wanted tighter testing and clearer staff engagement before committing longer term.