By: Nick Schonken
Within the past month, students have noticed a lot of construction work on campus. Although not apparent at first, after the workers moved on to different construction sites, it was clear they were installing sensors within the bathroom.
restroom of Ranger Hall.
Based on the build of the devices, they appear to be Verkada’s SV11 Environmental Sensor.
The device can measure temperature, humidity, noise, air quality index, motion, the PM 2.5 quantity, and the total amount of volatile organic compounds in the air.
However, the sensors are being installed in Redwood’s restrooms for their “vape index”. Verkada says that its “Vape Index is a score derived from multiple sensors that [are] strongly correlated with vaping and/or smoking activity”.
The sensors work in parallel with a phone app. When an event is triggered, such as someone smoking in the bathroom, a silent alarm occurs; in turn, administrators will get a notification and head to the scene. The sensors are also commonly used in tandem with camera systems; so admins can see who was in the bathroom when an event was triggered.
Mathew Shin, Redwood’s Principle, comments on what students can soon expect.
When asked about multiple suspects in a room during an alarm trigger, Shin says that “if we have probable cause… we can search.” Adding that, “If we go in there (restrooms), and there’s a group of kids and a cloud of smoke, we could just say, ‘we need to search what you have right now and see…'”
Shin says that “if you didn’t do anything, show us you didn’t do anything and go on your way. It’s the quickest way to clear your name.”
Shin says that “I’m sure [the sensor’s ecosystem will] be up and ready to go by the start of the school year.”
On top of detecting vaping in restrooms, Shin expects the sensors to “ensure safety in the bathrooms…” Such as the noise detection feature being used to detect vandalism or fights.
Shin says, “as we end the school year, I hope that those students coming back next year to Redwood, are a little more mature in how we use our bathrooms; and they realize the bathrooms are to be used for the right reasons. Not to congregate, not to do things they shouldn’t be doing… and that all students will be able to use the restroom for their intended purpose. That’s what I want to see happen, get it back to that. Because I’ve been here for seven years and we’ve never had bathroom issues like we have this year… I just can’t explain it. I don’t know what it is and I don’t understand why students feel the need to go in there and do things they shouldn’t be doing.