West Clermont High School is one of the few schools in the area to recently implement SmartPass. SmartPass is a tool used in schools nationwide to track student movement throughout the building. This not only helps faculty and staff manage the location of students, but also increases the overall safety in the building. Utilizing SmartPass ensures all students are accounted for, and even adds another layer of safety by limiting the number of students in the hallways (which is predetermined based on building facilities and capacities).
In addition to increased safety, the functions within SmartPass result in students spending less time in the hallway and more time in their classes learning. The application is accessible to all staff as well as students. This makes it easier for students to make appointments with counselors, administrators, and their teachers for additional support. From a procedural standpoint, there are also less interruptions in the classroom. If a student either receives or requests a pass, a notification is sent, and once approved, they are free to travel to that location. As with any new system and technology, misconceptions will arise. One of the main misconceptions regarding SmartPass is that there are strict limitations on student restroom usage. While there are default technological limitations set, ultimately there is autonomy at the discretion of staff to create a pass for them to take care of what is needed.
Being able to manage the location of all students in a manner that is visible to all staff comes with added benefits for parents as well. If a parent needs to reach their child, or a student requires early dismissal during a time of the day such as PACK, their location can vary despite their schedule because of the way PACK is now structured. While students have an assigned PACK bell, that portion of the day is broken up into PACK Success and PACK Connect. During Success, students may be with another teacher to receive support, and during Connect, students will be at different locations depending on the activity they choose. With these variables, SmartPass makes it easy to see the location of every student.
Since implementing SmartPass, incidents requiring student discipline have significantly decreased. When hallway traffic is easier to monitor and more visible, behavior such as vandalism and altercations between students is deterred. If such incidents do occur, the combination of SmartPass and cameras that have been in place since WCHS opened make it easier to take appropriate action. As with any new tool or software, there are learning curves, but the overall benefits provide students and staff with a safer environment and increased opportunity for academic success.
By Jocilyn Mahaffey, West Clermont High School Class of 2024