NYC Schools to Get Camera-Based, Door-Locking Security System: What to Know

New York City Schools are rolling out a door-locking mechanism to increase safety for students in more than 1,000 schools.

The city’s Department of Education agreed to a $43 million contract that would put camera-based door-locking mechanisms in 1,300 buildings. For now, the front door of these facilities will have the technology.

The mechanism was one that PS28 in Queens piloted, something that principal Robert Quintana is proud of and feels upbeat as an added measure of safety for his students.

“It allows us to see who’s coming in and who shouldn’t. You can’t put a price on time,” he said.

Quintana asked for the security upgrade at his school after someone suddenly walked in last fall. 

“We had an intruder in the building. Fortunately, I was able to subdue him,” he said.

However, not everyone is happy with this measure.

“What’s to stop somebody else from holding it open with their foot or something,” Steve Frankel, from Corona, said,.

But parents NBC 4 New York spoke with seem reassured. 

“I like the camera,” Miriam Ortiz said, adding that she feels safer.

Mark Rampersant, the chief of safety for NYC Schools, the nation’s largest school district, shared with NBC 4 New York what he would answer to critics who question the cost — or the effectiveness — of a door locking system at every school.

“I am sorry many people feel it’s not worth having — it is another layer of safety adding to our wonderful school system,” he said.