Wake County unveils new district-wide visitor check-in system

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Friday, July 7, 2023
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WAKE COUNTY, N.C. (WTVD) -- Checking into a Wake County school will look a little different this year.

You'll now have to sign in through a district-wide security system. It'll ask for your phone number and then you can scan an ID to auto fill the rest of the information.

If you don't have an ID, you can enter it manually. The system then checks a cloud-based database that includes registered sex offenders and a prohibited persons list before printing out a name tag with your photo and name.

"We're trying to get two things out of this. Consistency throughout the district so that everyone has the same experience when they come to a school to check in. And we want all of these systems to talk to each other," said Kendrick Scott, WCPSS senior director of security.

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So what happens if someone doesn't have an ID and they use a different name? We asked that question and the district says they'll have to make adjustments as they learn more.

"We're bringing the system online first and then there are different features we can add and take off to make the work flow better," Scott said.

Year-round schools will be the first to use the new security measures starting on July 11 when students return to the classroom. Wake County school officials say this is a step in keeping your kids safer.

"It's very intuitive. It's very easy to work with and i think it'll probably be something that the parents will like," Scott said.

Once you sign into the system you will receive a link via text. You can follow that link to sign out once you leave the school.