HAZARD, Ky.--An independent high school here is piloting a digital video surveillance system that was installed with funds provided by the Rural Law Enforcement Technology Center, a project that enables school officials to better address potential security issues.

The solution from InterAct Public Safety Systems replaces the school's eight black and white cameras that fed images into a VCR. With the digital system in place, users can command and control video systems, and send security alerts and corresponding video clips to external devices. Since the city of Hazard already uses a computer-aided dispatch to call on law enforcement, any alerts at the school can be funneled directly into the city's 911 center.

RULETC, an agency that provides technology solutions to the nation's rural and small criminal justice departments, designated school safety as an area that it wanted to look into recommending security solutions for and in an effort to test off-the-shelf technology's use in the educational sector, it turned to its local high school as a test site.

"I wanted a system that could monitor both inside and outside the school that would allow principle administrators to view particular areas and see if it was secure and safe." said Rod Maggard, director of RULETC.

School officials are able to view remote areas by using a handheld device to move a camera to a specific area to see if a situation -- such as a fight on school property --requires additional attention.

Since the school, which currently has 300 enrolled students, is in close proximity to RULETC, Maddard said it was a good facility for the pilot as the agency is able to monitor results and work closely with school authorities with potential operational issues.

"We'll probably monitor it for one year," he said. "We want to see how the school personnel react to it, particularly the administrators."

Although Hazard may not face the same risks larger and city high schools face, many security issues are similar as elsewhere in the country.

"We are concerned with people coming into the campus that have no reason to be there and there is always a concern with a person bringing a weapon in," Maddard said. "Overall, I think administrators want to create a safer environment. That is only reasonable to expect from schools when you have a student attending one."