ANDERSON COUNTY, Tenn. (WATE) — Anderson County Schools is strengthening school safety through new security measures and technology designed to help first responders respond more quickly during an emergency.

“Safety starts at the front door of our schools,” said ACS Communications Director Ryan Sutton. “If kids aren’t safe, they can’t learn in our schools.”

School safety preparedness is an ever-evolving mission, and in Anderson County, the focus is on finding ways to ensure every school has the best advantage possible.

One of those efforts is the addition of secure entrance vestibules at new school buildings, including the new Claxton Elementary School, which is scheduled to open next school year.

“So, one of the things that we’ve looked at and have begun to start implementing, especially with our new school, not this school year but next year, [at] Claxton, is a vestibule-type thing,” said Sutton. “Once that person does declare their intent to become a guest in our school and they come to the front desk, sometimes there wasn’t a way to stop them from going where they want to. The vestibule idea of, ‘Hey, there’s this other door beyond this that we have to let you through to get into the school,’ is just another layer of protection for our students and staff.”

In addition to physical security upgrades, the district is using technology to help ensure there are no barriers to communication during an emergency on any campus.

Last school year, Anderson County Schools implemented the Rave app, an emergency communication platform developed by Motorola.

“We have implemented last year, and it’s been hugely successful, the Rave app,” Sutton said. “It’s a product by Motorola. It goes on the smartphone of every teacher, and it’s geofenced to the location of the school, meaning that it only works within the GPS coordinates of the school.”

While downloading the app is voluntary, the district says nearly 100% of staff members have chosen to use it.

“If there is a medical emergency or an intruder, or potentially something else where somebody just needs assistance, they grab their phone, one click, slide over, choose that emergency, and the people that are supposed to be contacted for that type of emergency are notified via text message, via email, maybe even a call in some cases,” Sutton said.

District leaders say the app helps staff quickly alert the appropriate people during an emergency, but they emphasize that school resource officers remain the first line of defense.

“We’re so lucky to have an SRO on every school campus, which is something that we strive for every single year,” Sutton said. “Having that boots-on-the-ground approach means they can address any type of emergency in the building while also building relationships with kids.”

The Rave app also includes a chat feature that allows staff members to provide additional details to emergency responders during an incident, giving first responders more information before they arrive on scene.