Chelsea Schools Improves its Communication

The Chelsea School District is moving forward on fully upgrading and expanding its radio communication system. At their July 14 meeting, the Chelsea school board moved forward on purchasing a whole new modernization of an essential daily communication tool.

The cost of the project is estimated to be $164,878. It’s planned to be funded by district bond dollars.

The school board was introduced to this idea in June by Ryan Spencer, the district’s Director of Technology, and Doug Whitsel, the Director of Safety and Security. They both said in their report that there were some gaps and limitations discovered during the recent security review that led them in part to recommend an update to the radio system.

“The new radios will be used not only for routine communication across buildings and departments but also as a critical tool during emergency situations,” they said in their report.

The district is getting 185 handheld radios and 45 vehicle-installed radios. The portable handheld radios will be distributed to staff in all buildings and the mobile radios will be installed in the district’s buses, trucks and vans. Spencer and Whitsel said the repeater located at the Jiffy tower will be replaced as well and new repeaters will be added at Beach Middle School and Chelsea High School to improve in-building strength.

They said each building and department will have its own dedicated communication channel.

“Given the improvements to both daily operations and emergency readiness, we see this as a strategic investment in district safety and communication infrastructure,” Spencer’s and Whitsel’s report concluded.