Every morning, parents across New York—and the country—watch their children leave for school with the same hope: that they will be safe, learn well, and return home with a smile. But in a time when school shootings have become sadly common, that hope is proving increasingly difficult to maintain.
To strengthen school safety, New York City has taken an innovative step by launching the nation’s first Emergency Alert System that directly connects schools to 911, ensuring help can be activated in seconds.
Yesterday, Mayor Eric Adams and Chief Technology Officer Matthew Fraser announced the launch of this new Emergency Alert System (EAS), the first in the nation to directly connect public schools with 911 operators.
The pilot program began this fall at the Spring Creek Campus in Brooklyn and is planned to expand to 25 school buildings across the five boroughs (representing 51 schools) during the 2025–2026 school year.
How the new technology will work
Typically, in an emergency, a school staff member must call 911, describe the situation, confirm the address and wait while the call is transferred to an operator, a process that can take several minutes.
The new Emergency Alert System eliminates that delay. Each participating school will be equipped with multiple fixed buttons and wireless pendant devices that can activate a hard lockdown alert.
Once activated, the signal reaches directly to 911 dispatch in less than 10 seconds, connecting to real-time operations of the New York Police Department (NYPD).
Dispatchers can immediately send units to the scene, while a digital dashboard provides police with key building information.
Inside the school, visual and audible alerts inform teachers and students that 911 has been notified and that the lockdown is in progress.
At the same time, notifications are sent to the NYPD Department of School Safety and officials in the New York City Public Schools system.
Safety is the top priority
Municipal authorities emphasize that this new system is based on preparation, not panic.
“We never want to imagine the unthinkable,” said NYC Public Schools Chancellor Melissa Avilés-Ramos, “but safety must remain our top priority. This pilot program adds another layer of protection and peace of mind for our students, families and educators.”
Chief Technology Officer Matthew Fraser, himself a father, shared that same sentiment: “There is nothing more important than knowing that your children will come home safe and sound at the end of the day.”
Like other safety measures already in place — such as locking doors, school safety officers in each building, and regular lockdown drills — this new system adds another layer of protection.
It works alongside existing programs like the Safer Access Program, which keeps school entrances safe, NYPD School Safety Officers in each building, and emergency protocols already practiced regularly.
Between 2015 and 2025, the K-12 School Shooting Database recorded more than 1,900 incidents of school shootings nationwide, with 351 in 2023 and 336 in 2024.
For now, only some schools are part of the pilot program for 2025–2026. If your child’s school is included, administration will contact you with more details.
Lockdown drills will continue as usual. Teachers and staff will receive training on how and when to use the system, and students will not have to do anything as it is designed to run unobtrusively in the background.
Parents also do not need to change their routine, but it is always advisable to stay informed through school communications and review emergency procedures with their children.
Of course, no system can eliminate all risks under current gun laws, but this initiative represents another important step to protect our children.
As Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said, “I pray that these rapid response alerts never have to be used.”
