Texas schools set to require silent panic alarms

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Harlingen Consolidated Independent School District is getting the jump on a state law requiring all Texas public and charter schools to install silent panic alarm systems.

The law was signed by Governor Greg Abbott last June and it requires all public and charter schools to install silent alert technology in classrooms by the 2025-26 school year.

Senate Bill 838, also known as "Alyssa's Law" was named after one of the victims of the 2018 Parkland school shooting.

Danny Castillo, Harlingen CISD Director of Emergency Management and School Safety, said they are finalizing the training of their silent alert system and hope to start using it within the next 30 days.

The school district purchased Centegix, a leader in the industry of rapid incident response.

“It’s a wearable panic button system that will be issued to every one of our staff members. It’s a simple system of just pressing a certain button and once that alert goes out instantly and simultaneously alerts our internal security team and our first responder community," Castillo said.

Castillo said the expectation is that it will be easier to use in stressful situations and it will shorten the emergency response time.

"There's no need to pick up a phone and try to dial a number," Castillo said. "We all know that once you're under duress or you're nervous, it's hard to do some of those very simple things that you do every day."

While this is an extra step in school safety, Castillo said he believes the district already does a good job in collaborating with local first responders to ensure safety.

"We wanted to assure parents that your students are safe here within the school district. We do have a constant presence. We have measures in place, and it's not just one measure, it's a layered approach. A layered, collaborative, multi-tiered approach to the ongoing safety of our students and our staff," Castillo said.