Davidson County Schools moves forward with state-funded AI school safety program

Davidson County Schools approved a contract to pilot an artificial intelligence safety program funded by the state. 

The North Carolina General Assembly appropriated $2 million to Davidson County Schools for the implementation of an AI School Safety Pilot Program in 2023. 

Then last year, when NCGA passed disaster recovery legislation to address the impacts of Hurricane Helene, new details about the program were tucked within the 132-page document. 

The legislation doesn’t name a specific vendor, but outlines a list of “performance capabilities” the proposed solution must offer, like weapons detection, facial recognition and a license plate reader. 

This week, the Davidson County Board of Education voted to award the contract for the program to Eviden, a technology company headquartered in France. 

But DCS Superintendent Gregg Slate says “the use of facial recognition and license plate detection are not within the scope of work for the Davidson County Schools with Eviden.”

The school district’s Executive Director of Operations Chris Johnston said it was one of two vendors that responded to the request for proposals. Eviden was chosen because it had a “more robust offering.” 

"They were in the Olympics, providing cyber security," Johnston said, adding that they were also at the World Cup. "And so that was the rationale.” 

Several public speakers had concerns about the contract, ranging from the effectiveness of the AI security program to the fact the company is not based in the United States. 

“I'm going to put my MAGA hat on and say that I'd like to see American companies be in charge of securing American schools," said speaker Richard Fosman.

District officials said the new program would not replace existing safety systems, but add an extra layer of support. Board Member Ashley Carroll put it this way: 

“Is it the right fit? Only time will tell," she said. "However, at this point, we are actively choosing our kids by giving our teachers, principals and administrators another tool to keep those said kids safe.” 

After much discussion, board members voted 4-1 to approve the contract, subject to a third-party risk assessment.  

The state legislation also appropriated $3.2 million to New Hanover County Schools for the same purpose. Both districts will be required to report the impacts of the pilot program to lawmakers next year.

*Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story did not indicate that the funds for the AI pilot program were originally appropriated by the NCGA in 2023. This story has also been updated to add a comment from DCS officials.

Amy Diaz covers education for WFDD in partnership with Report For America. You can follow her on Twitter at @amydiaze.