Tuscaloosa School Board Weighs Adding Cameras to High Schools

Tuscaloosa City Schools is considering an expansion of parking lot security camera coverage at five district locations, with the school board set to vote on the proposal Tuesday.

The proposal would add 16 cameras across Central High School, Northridge High School, Paul W. Bryant High School, the Tuscaloosa Career & Technology Academy and the Central Office, which would receive one additional camera.

The board will consider the item during its Tuesday, August 18 meeting, which begins at 5:30 p.m.

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"Safety is always at the forefront of the decisions we make about our facilities and operations," said Deron Cameron, assistant superintendent of operations for Tuscaloosa City Schools. "We already have exterior cameras at our schools, and this proposal would give us greater visibility in our high school parking lots and other key areas. This added coverage would provide another layer of security for our students, employees and visitors and help us respond when incidents occur."

Under the proposal, Alabama Power Company would provide and maintain the camera system, which would integrate with the district's existing Milestone video management system. Alabama Power would retain ownership of the camera equipment, while TCS would retain ownership of all data collected, with video accessible only to approved district personnel.

In a Monday press release ahead of the vote, TCS said the proposed agreement runs 60 months and requires no upfront installation costs.

The estimated monthly service cost is $2,934.80, plus an additional estimated $467.64 per month in energy usage, for a combined estimated monthly cost of $3,402.44.

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