Ohio Educators Lead the Country in School Safety Initiatives

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Aug. 13, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- As students head back to school, two of Ohio's most influential education organizations are leading an initiative to make Ohio schools safer, supporting a cloud-based emergency preparedness system that speeds response time, potentially saving lives. The proven technology enables first responders to access critical information—such as floor plans, campus maps, live video feeds and emergency protocols—via any Internet-enabled device, including police car computers and hand-held devices, during a crisis.

The Ohio School Boards Association (OSBA) and the school superintendents and administrators of the Buckeye Association of School Administrators (BASA) have partnered with NaviGate Prepared, a system that gives first responders eyes-on visibility to a crisis as it unfolds, significantly reducing and improving response time.

"Through this partnership, we are encouraging all schools, in Ohio and elsewhere, to learn more about cloud-based technology that not only better prepares first responders, but also makes it easy to constantly update and access your emergency plans," said BASA Executive Director Kirk Hamilton."

"In a crisis, seconds count," said Thom Jones of NaviGate Prepared. "In every instance where lives are at stake, speed of response time is the single most important factor for saving lives.  This system, which houses every piece of a school's vital safety information—from emergency plans and floor plans, to call lists and campus maps—is housed in a secure, cloud environment that can be accessed immediately by anyone with a passcode, including first responders in your community," Jones said. "That's why the OSBA and BASA, two of the most respected educational entities in the state of Ohio, are encouraging all schools to consider such a system."

Specifically, NaviGate Prepared improves safety by:

• Housing information that is critical to emergency response in an easily accessible cloud environment; this information could include photos of students, floor plans, live video feeds from in-room cameras, call lists, emergency plans and other vital data
• Providing first responders access to this information prior to arrival on the scene of an emergency so they are better prepared
• Creating greater eyes-on visibility to an unfolding crisis
• Improving response time
• Enabling maps, floor plans, emergency exits, etc., to be updated quickly, effortlessly and continuously (unlike paper binder plans)

"NaviGate Prepared not only has the potential to make our schools safer, it also provides a consistent, electronic system for meeting all school safety plan requirements while simultaneously enabling schools to instantly update all floor plans, call lists and emergency safety protocols. BASA Executive Director Kirk Hamilton said, "In essence, it is the first 'one-stop-shopping' tool we have seen that is comprehensive while still cost-effective."

To learn more, visit www.NaviGatePrepared.com.

About Lauren Innovations

Lauren Innovations (www.laureninnovations.com) is dedicated to the development and enhancement of technologies and services that contribute to a safer, healthier and more secure world. Headquartered in New Philadelphia, Ohio, Lauren Innovations is a subsidiary of Lauren International (www.laureninternational.com). For more information, call 866-861-7400.

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