TAMPA, Fla. — As Hillsborough County schools has received several school shooting threats recently, the district is seeking to reassure parents that there are security measures in place. 

John Newman, the chief of security for Hillsborough County Schools, said he monitors the Centegix crisis alert system from his office every day, and he now knows the sounds of the different alerts by heart.

“That’s a teacher asking for help,” he said when the alarm sounded on his screen, noting that it wasn't a major threat.

“We’ve had this for such a long time, without me looking, I know that’s probably just a staff alert being handled at the school," he said. "But when I start feeling, or hearing, the rhythm of the signal go off, you can usually tell if it’s something that’s getting elevated."

Hillsborough County Schools started using Centegix five years ago as a crisis alert system. Every employee wears a card around their neck, and by pushing the button embedded in the card, they can call for help — or put their school in a lockdown, if needed. That signal for help is sent to the district’s communications center.

Newman described it as like the district’s 911 call center. Dispatchers monitor Centegix and send the appropriate response when something comes up. 

Newman said his team walked every single school so they could update all the maps in the system so law enforcement can pinpoint where threats are in schools.

“You don’t have to worry about wondering where the threat is — the locator tells you exactly where that person is asking for help," he said. "So if you get a bunch of people in a row pressing the card asking for help, they know exactly where they are within one meter. So that’s huge — that’s a game changer right there, because our campuses are big."

Newman cameras at district schools will be integrated with Centagix software within the next few months, so he’ll instantly have eyes on the scene when situations arise.