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On Feb. 1, the Blount County (Tenn.) 9-1-1 Communications Center launched its new Text-A-Tip service in local high schools. The service, which was a joint project among the center, the Blount County Sheriff’s Office, Alcoa Police Department, Maryville Police Department and three area school districts, allows students from the four county high schools to text anonymous information to 9-1-1 to increase safety. In the two weeks since its launch, the program has had great success and is growing. Blount County 9-1-1 Comm Center Assistant Director Donna Overstreet recently talked toPSCabout the ins and outs.

Q: How was this process initiated, and who was involved with the program’s coordination and implementation?
Overstreet: We started working on this project in November 2009. Officer Jeff Hicks, with the Blount County Sheriff’s Office, forwarded me a link and asked me to take a look at the Web site for TipSoft. Officer Hicks is an SRO [school resource officer] at Heritage High School is Blount County. He had discovered the software from an article in a Campus Safety magazine. I took a look at it and thought it would be a good thing. I’m involved with the School Crisis  [Safety] Committees with all three school districts in our county. The next day I had a meeting with the Alcoa School Safety committee. I presented the idea to Alcoa City Schools. They loved the idea and ask for more information.

After I got the word back to Officer Hicks, he contacted the Maryville SRO. We started putting everything together, and the next meeting consisted of representatives from all jurisdictions involved. Officer Hicks had solicited Director Ron Talbott, of the 5th Judicial District Drug Task Force, to have him involved in the program also.

Q: What was the main reason for starting the program?
Overstreet: After everyone started talking about it, we all knew that in order to keep up with technology, this was the way to go to reach our school kids. Theses school kids can text blindfolded. Even though the schools have a “no cell phone” policy, we all know they have them. We looked at it like if the kids have the information and don’t want to be seen talking to an SRO to be considered a snitch by the other students, this is a way to help them remain anonymous.

I’ve read these texts, and that’s what [the students] is doing. One of the tips was that someone had smokeless tobacco on them, which all tobacco products are prohibited. When the officer searched [the suspect], they also found contraband—all from a simple tip.

For public safety, if we are going to keep up with these school kids—what do school kids do all the time? They text. So we are hoping that if [the program] can save a life or a kid from drugs, it will. Also, if there is a kid who is being abused, they may use this [program] as a route to get help.

Q: What kind of texts have come in since the program’s launch two weeks ago?
Overstreet: Over the last two weeks, the SROs have made a couple of drug busts and have written citations. They have had heads up on a fight that was to occur after school and were able to intervene. Plus, they are getting information that is resulting in ongoing investigations.

Q: How is the program being funded?
Overstreet: Actually, Officer Hicks approached Director Talbott to fund the program. They get these tips, which could result in drug tips, among other things, and enhance their operation.

The Drug Task Force funded the program for the first year of service with monies confiscated from drugs. The service for the four high schools involved for the upcoming year is going to be about $2200 for our area. In the event that the Drug Task Force is unable to fund the program the following year, the funding will be split between the three entities. This being with the county funding half, and the two cities splitting the other half. Funding is already in place for the upcoming year.

Q: What technology is being used, and how was it installed?
Overstreet: The software is TipSoft by Anderson Software. We are the first agency in Tennessee to have this particular software implemented to serve district-wide and to have independent key codes assigned to each of our high schools. Officer Hicks corresponded with the Douglas County Sheriffs Department in Colorado that uses the same program. They fortunately have their own communications center for their school systems. We don’t have that here, so it is housed at the Blount County 9-1-1 Center.

The schools had some concerns about this and they wanted to ensure that this information was kept confidential. Kids will be kids, and we expected to get some pranks texted in. To our surprise, since two weeks ago, we have not had one signal prank.

We have three shift supervisors at our center that monitors TipSoft. They are all have 15+ years under their belts. TipSoft has only been installed on these supervisors PCs. Even with confidentiality policies in place at the center, the school officials felt more comfortable knowing the information was only being viewed by these three supervisors. We all know the dispatchers have enough to do. Right?

The supervisors check the program periodically during the shift when on duty. The software has a pop up that tells them there is a [new] tip. When they check it, we have the system loaded with contact information for the different agencies/departments involved. The supervisors forward the tip to the appropriate contact. The contacts receive the information by e-mail, their PDAs or Blackberrys, if they have them.

The way the texts come in, we are able to distinguish which school system is involved. We have four different high schools, and the students are told to start the message with a key word that has been assigned to their school. For instance, for Heritage High School, their keyword is HHSTIP; for Alcoa High School, their keyword is AHSTIP. It takes somewhere between 5–10 minutes for us to receive the text.

The tips are immediately forwarded to the proper contact once received by the supervisor. No matter what the tips is, if it is important enough for the student to be concerned, the info is passed on to their SRO. If we should get a tip that says someone has a gun in their locker, the supervisors make contact with the SRO directly to make sure they have received the info.

When a tip comes in, the software assigns the text an ID number. We can correspond with the person sending the text using that ID number. If the supervisor feels that more information is needed before the text is forwarded, they will converse with the person to obtain as much information as possible. The text is routed through Canada where it is encrypted. We don’t see what phone number the text is coming from. When the person receives their response back that their message has been received, they receive their ID number and are also told that if this is an emergency, call 9-1-1.

Q: What kind of education campaign has been conducted?
Overstreet: Students helped us design posters with the information for the Text-A-Tip program. The posters have been placed in classrooms. Business type cards have been published and handed out to the students, and we have intentions of advertising the program on each schools network station. The school systems are really working hard, along with the SROs, to get this information out to the students.

Last Monday morning, before the press conference to introduce the new Text-A-Tip program, members of the schools student counsels were busy, along with school officials and SROs, introducing the program to the students. At this time, we were ready to start receiving the tips. By early afternoon, we were getting our first tips.

Q: Were there concerns that this program would compromise the 9-1-1 system, resulting in students texting 9-1-1 or the tip line during a real emergency?
Overstreet: I was concerned that this might happen. I do not want these kids to think they can use this instead of calling 9-1-1. This is something we have stressed, with the help of the SROs, in posters and on the business cards: Do not use this as 9-1-1. If this is an emergency you still need to call 9-1-1. There is not a certain time during a shift that the supervisors check the tips. It just depends on their workload.

We will not let the 9-1-1 system be compromised by this program. When they first forwarded me the posters to review, I said, ‘Everything looks good, but I want this part highlighted, “For emergencies dial 9-1-1.”’ All the schools have granted me that.

Q: How will the program grow, if at all?
Overstreet: The Blount County Sheriff’s Department Web site [www.bcso.com or www.tipsubmit.com/cs_index.htm] has a Text-A-Tip link. The sheriff has opened the program to the public. You click on the link and it says: “Do you have information about a crime? Is this school related or not.” Users can send a photo, if there is one available, of a suspect. We hope to implement the program in the middle schools by August of this year. We never dreamed the program would be operating as quickly as it has. Everyone getting involved like they have, from the school officials to the law enforcement agencies/SROs, and of course the 9-1-1 center, we all have made this happen.

Q: How to you feel about the overall program?
Overstreet: It’s been absolutely wonderful so far, but keep in mind we have only had it up and running for two weeks now. [The SROs] are actually already starting to see results in a two-week time span. It’s really been great. Each and everyone involved is pleased—the school officials, the sheriff, the chiefs—therefore, it makes us happy! We all worked really hard in making this a countywide program.

For more information on the program or to get in touch with Overstreet, please contact PSC Assistant Editor Natasha Yetman at 619/699-6548 or yetmann@apcointl.org.