Kan. (KCTV) – The Bonner Springs-Edwardsville school district has installed AI-powered gun-detection software on its existing security cameras ahead of the upcoming school year, making it the only district in Kansas known to have the technology
The system, called ZeroEyes, layers onto cameras already in place and can identify an unconcealed firearm in three to five seconds. When a gun is detected, trained military and law enforcement veterans are alerted, who then notify local police.
ZeroEyes operators only see still images when a gun is detected. If no threat is present, operators see a blank screen.
Dr. Chris Heilig, executive vice president of school safety and technology at ZeroEyes and a former Philadelphia-area superintendent, said the system shifts school safety from reactive to proactive.
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“The multiple layers of safety are reactive. ZeroEyes makes them proactive. Now you can actually detect something to prevent it,” Heilig said.
The district paid for the system through a $10 million state grant from Attorney General Kris Kobach, at no cost to local taxpayers.
The program was not without controversy. Gov. Laura Kelly once vetoed similar funding, calling it a no-bid contract. A competitive bidding process eventually allowed the grant to move forward.
Katie Foster, a mother of three children in the district, said she has mixed feelings about AI generally – but not in this context.
“I do believe there’s a time and place for AI. This is an instance where it can protect children immediately play a hand in that,” Foster said.
Foster said school safety has been a concern since the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.
“I am never at 100% peace of mind. My daughter was like two when Sandy Hook happened. It’s always been in the back of my head,” Foster said.
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She said the speed of the system addresses a limitation parents face in emergencies.
“As a parent, you can’t just run into a building. By the time you get there, you’re still not going to be able to do anything. So it’s nice to know that something can be done faster than any actual human response time could be,” Foster said.
The Bonner Springs-Edwardsville school district said the technology fits into its existing approach to campus security.
“We were pleased to receive funding through the Kansas Safe and Secure Firearm Detection Grant Program to be able to add ZeroEyes as an added layer of security to our crisis response plan,” said Ashley Razak, director of communications for the district. “Ensuring the safety of our students and staff is at the core of everything we do, and the deployment of ZeroEyes is a natural extension of our proactive, layered approach to securing our campuses.”
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