VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – Volusia County schools are introducing a new weapons detection artificial intelligence (AI) program, making it the first school district in Florida to use this advanced technology.
The district started its pilot program at Atlantic High School in Port Orange on Tuesday.
The school district claims this system is quick and efficient. It can scan up to 2,000 students in just one hour.
The process is similar to airport security: students place their bags on a scanner and walk through a metal detector.
[EXCLUSIVE: Become a News 6 Insider (it’s FREE) | PINIT! Share your photos]
“When it screens through the actual scanner, it looks for the density of metal in a backpack,” said Mike Micallef, an Executive Director with Volusia County Schools.
The new E-Volv Express and Expedite systems can detect the weight of items that might be weapons. If the AI technology identifies a weight similar to that of a gun, it will flag the item for further inspection.
The district’s safety team explained that the system can also recognize the shape of metal objects.
“If a student sets off the metal detector, a red box will appear on the screen, showing where the detector found something suspicious on their body,” Micallef added.
Currently, Volusia schools use portable metal detectors to randomly screen middle and high school students. The district believes this new AI technology is faster and more reliable. It adds another layer of security to existing measures, such as resource deputies, officers, weapon detection dogs, and gated campuses.
“The great thing about doing a pilot program between now and the end of the year is that we have time to collect data and analyze it daily,” said Superintendent Dr. Carmen Balgobin.
This will allow schools to make any necessary adjustments to improve the process. For example, several students were flagged Tuesday for carrying large laptops.
“Moving forward, we will ensure that students are asked to remove such devices before entering the scanner,” Balgobin explained.
This pilot program will continue at Atlantic High School for the rest of the school year. The school district hopes to expand the program to all high schools in Volusia County in the future.
