When you’re searching for new technology to help students learn better or for a school to run more efficiently, there are countless options. Which technology will live up to its promises? How does a school evaluate differences?
That’s where T.E.S.T. comes in. Total Education Solutions in Technology (T.E.S.T.) works with K-12 schools across Montana to research and provide the best technology for their needs. They help school administrators and educators evaluate, implement and integrate audio/visual, digital communication, and teaching aid technology that support students learning in safe, efficient environments.
Founder and CEO Liz Cunningham and her team offer consulting, installation, training and maintenance services, and they are sought-after experts who have offered countless trainings, workshops and teacher support across Montana for the last 20 years.
Why T.E.S.T. and American Time?
“A lot of schools are looking for safety and security products,” explained Cunningham. “In particular, our clients are looking for digital messaging and emergency alert systems.”
When a new high school included digital clocks in its specs, T.E.S.T. turned to its partner Audio Enhancement for a recommendation to include in their bid. “Audio Enhancement suggested we look at American Time for school clocks,” said Cunningham. “When I was on the website, I saw the EverAlert communication platform that took care of a clock system and so many other functions of communicating in a school. I thought it would be a great fit, so we included it in our bid and we won the project.”
EverAlert Streamlines & Enhances School Communication
Cunningham and her team look at every project through the lens of safety and security, which is a key feature of EverAlert. “We like to offer schools products that do more than just one thing,” she said.
EverAlert technology is multi-functional. It offers schools a reliable, easy way to communicate in emergencies as well as in daily use: Synchronized clocks, bells, classroom-based messaging and school-wide news can all be managed with EverAlert. It even enables school administrators or teachers to communicate via classroom and hallway display screens.
Daily Messaging and Communication
- Deliver clearer daily messages and tailor communication by classroom or grade
- Communicate with audio, sound and visual cues for different learners
- Customizable screen layout
Synchronized Clock System
- Keep classes running precisely and smoothly
- Configurable features include common area or individual room countdown timers
- Scheduling capabilities
- Bell options keep everyone on time and can replace an aging bell system
Emergency Alerts
- Keep critical communications clear and timely during threats
- Integration with systems like fire, P.A. and lockdown create seamless communications in an emergency
- Automatically alert campus or community authorities for rapid response
“The multi-functional ability of EverAlert to support safety drills and messaging is really important to schools,” explained Cunningham. “But once it’s installed, schools especially appreciate the daily use of it. It brings value every day.”
Schools are integrating EverAlert into lockdown systems, such as door locks, as well as fire alarm systems. Messages instantly appear on the EverAlert screens when a lockdown or fire alarm is activated. One school replaced its entire bell system with EverAlert.
“The Butte school district started out with EverAlert in just a few schools, but liked it so much that every school will have it installed soon,” said Cunningham. “They use it to push out school messages every day, and they like that they can control which screens display specific messages. Another district loves the instant messages that the office can send to a classroom because it’s less disruptive than using the intercom.”
Not every emergency is life or death, and EverAlert can communicate any warning or alert issued by an administrator. One of T.E.S.T.’s client schools has a moose that tends to wander in the playground area. The office simply sends a message via EverAlert to all classrooms, alerting them not to go out onto the playground because the moose is nearby!
Throughout Montana, in small and large schools, EverAlert reimagines what school communications can be. To learn more about T.ES.T. and its services, visit them here.
See how EverAlert can enhance communication in your building.
