Texas school districts spend millions on safety technology, data shows

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Anna Reger said school safety became personal for her in 2019 when she got a notice that her daughter’s elementary school was under a lockdown.

“She was scared and I was scared,” said Reger, owner and founder of FlipLok.

Reger said the notice was for an incident that happened near her child’s school. It was not a direct threat to the campus, but it caused her to ask her daughter questions about what they were supposed to do in that situation.

“‘My teacher turns off the light. My teacher locks the door.’ And I said, ‘OK.’ I said, ‘Can you lock the door?’ And she said, ‘No, mommy,'” Reger recalled. “I said, ‘How do you know if the door is locked?’ And she said, ‘I don’t, my teacher.’ And I said, ‘OK, what do you do if your teacher’s not with you?’ And I was waiting for this next action step, and she didn’t have one.”

Reger said that’s what sparked her to find a solution and create an interior door lock that kids could use. One that very obviously shows when the door is locked.

Reger said the lock works as simply as its name and can hold over 2,000 pounds of pressure. She said there’s no industry standard she’s required to meet, but she had her own testing done, which included ensuring FlipLok can withstand gunfire.

“They shut it and just flip it. It’s so simple,” Reger said.

For Reger, it was about seeing a need and finding something to fill it. She said she wanted something that could also give parents peace of mind while their children are at school.

She said her goal was to provide simple technology that would be a one-time cost for the buyers.

Since launching in 2023, FlipLok is now in at least 10 states, including in schools, hospitals, corporations, and an embassy, Reger said.

“Whenever there’s a problem and there’s people that can provide a solution, of course, there’s going to be an industry. And now I believe that you don’t have to gouge people for what you’ve created,” Reger said.

Reger acknowledges that school safety has become an “industry,” and estimates she has hundreds of competitors for lock systems.

Research has found that public schools from kindergarten to 12th grade have spent nearly half a billion dollars on technology to upgrade their security infrastructure over the last five years, according to data from a partnership between ABC News and GovSpend.

Specifically in Texas, data shows a spike in school safety spending in the aftermath of the 2022 Robb Elementary shooting, from a couple of million dollars in 2020 to right under $40 million in 2024.

At Klein Independent School District, the district stated that the money it receives from the state for school safety and security covers just 25% of what it spends annually on school safety.

Still, Klein ISD Police Chief Marlon Runnels said he is proud of the investments Klein ISD has made into keeping the students and staff safe.

“Sometimes there are products that you can make a sound investment in that when people see it or they know about it, it just makes them feel like you’re doing everything you can to keep their kids safe,” Runnels said.

With so many products on the market and limited funding available, districts are forced to weigh what products will make the biggest impact on their security system.

“We’re very good at sending folks to conferences to see what new technologies are out there, bring that information back so our team can evaluate it,” Runnels said.

Each year, Runnels said the list of vendors pitching school safety products to districts continues to grow.

During a recent visit to Klein ISD’s Haude Elementary School, Runnels showed 13 Investigates the secured entrance to the newly renovated campus. He also pointed out 360-degree security cameras down hallways.

The district also has devices on doors that indicate when they are locked, which he said makes “things visually sound and easy to kind of understand.”

Teachers also have an app on their phone that allows them to alert higher-ups immediately if there’s a threat of any kind, and the district has just launched a drone program.

Runnels said that technology is paired with a campus guard program that helps make sure there are armed security officers on every campus, including all elementary schools.

“They’re very visible. They’re very active. They make patrols throughout the day consistently,” Runnels said.

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