Company to Receive Nearly $1.3 Million to Revise Florida School Safety Tool
Haystax Technology will receive nearly $1.3 million to revise the Florida Safe Schools Assessment Tool, which is used to identify threats and vulnerabilities on campuses.
- By Kaitlyn DeHaven
- July 12, 2019
The Florida Department of Education will pay Haystax Technology nearly $1.3 million to revise the Florida Safe Schools Assessment Tool, which is a tool used by all public schools to identify threats and vulnerabilities on campuses.
The revision will “incorporate recommendations that were legislatively mandated.” After the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School mass shooting in February 2018, lawmakers passed the recommendations in order to increase school security.
After the shooting, all schools, including public schools and charter schools, lawmakers required all school districts to complete the school security risk assessments for the tool. They were required to include a school’s physical security measures, school security and operational practices, security, crime and violence prevention policies and strategies, and emergency and crisis preparedness plans. The assessments were signed into law on March 9, 2018.
Haystax Technology was picked to develop and construct the tool since they had already gone through a competitive vetting process. A notice posted last week by the state agency stated that there was not a competitive bidding process for the contract.
The $1.3 million will go toward maintaining the tool for the next three years.
About the Author
Kaitlyn DeHaven is the Associate Content Editor for the Infrastructure Solutions Group at 1105 Media.