Michigan Districts Are Proactively Investing in School Safety

CENTEGIX releases new funding guide to help K-12 leaders put Section 31aa dollars to work

ATLANTA, Oct. 21, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Michigan school districts are moving ahead on proactive safety. The number of Michigan sites protected by CENTEGIX^®, the leader in rapid incident response safety solutions, has grown 2,375% since 2022. To help district leaders evaluate their options, CENTEGIX today released a Michigan Section 31aa Funding Guide covering eligible investments, emergency response considerations, and practical planning steps.

Policy and funding changes
Michigan lawmakers have introduced Alyssa’s Law, which would require at least one panic alarm in every school building. While the bill is under consideration, Section 31aa of the State School Aid Act already provides per-pupil grants for student mental health and school safety. As of October 1, eligible districts can apply FY27 Section 31aa funding to emergency response capabilities, infrastructure, and preparedness.

Districts are seeing results

Rochester Community Schools and Forest Hills Public Schools both recently implemented CENTEGIX CrisisAlert™. In its first week at Forest Hills, staff activated badges seven times, six of them for medical incidents.

“One of the members of our Medical Emergency Response Team got to a student having a violent seizure inside of one minute,” said Ben Kirby, Superintendent of Forest Hills Public Schools. “We got additional help, we got our SRO there, all the things you want to have happen, within 60 seconds. That wouldn’t have happened if we were dealing with phone calls and radios.”

Forest Hills chose CrisisAlert after identifying gaps in staff access to emergency communication when phones or radios were out of reach. Rochester Community Schools, which serves roughly 15,000 students across 22 facilities, selected it to improve response to medical and behavioral incidents while protecting confidentiality and accommodating different accessibility needs.

“When I started here two and a half years ago, we did a needs assessment of our facilities,” said Nick Russo, Superintendent of Rochester Community Schools. “Combined with the 31aa funding available, implementing CENTEGIX was the clear next step. Our badges have become part of what we wear every day. It’s not just a financial investment. We’ve made it a piece of our culture of safety and security.”

Advice for fellow Michigan leaders

Both superintendents point to the same fundamentals for Section 31aa decisions. Assess district needs, engage stakeholders, and plan for the long term. Rochester started with a needs assessment. Forest Hills convened a districtwide safety committee, evaluated multiple solutions, and visited Rochester to learn from its experience firsthand.

Russo and Kirby share more on their approaches in a recent episode of the CENTEGIX “Safety Signal” podcast.

Download the CENTEGIX School Safety Funding Guide for Michigan Districts at: https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6a68cb038b09643c6a1a517d/6aad6dca1384b85e29fbe905_Michigan%20Section%2031aa.pdf

Listen to the full podcast episode at: https://www.centegix.com/the-safety-signal-podcast#listen

About CENTEGIX®
CENTEGIX® is the leader in rapid incident response safety solutions, protecting more than 18 million people across 18,000+ locations in all 50 states. The CENTEGIX Safety Platform® brings together solutions for daily safety operations and emergency management, from CrisisAlert™ wearable safety technology, visitor management and locating, student movement, and communications to digital mapping, alert activated video, and reunification. Together, these solutions help organizations manage safety in every moment of every day, from behavioral and medical incidents to the most serious emergencies. CENTEGIX serves K-12 and higher education, healthcare, government, commercial, and public safety organizations nationwide.

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Media Contact
Robb Monkman
Chief Marketing Officer, CENTEGIX
rmonkman@centegix.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/48e308f7-60b3-4427-a97f-6bd4072875bf

Michigan Schools Are Prioritizing Safety

Michigan school districts are moving ahead on proactive safety. The number of Michigan sites protected by CENTEGIX®, the leader in rapid incident response safety solutions, has grown 2,375% since 2022.