CODY — Every elementary School in the Cody School District is now using a new automated visitor management system, so anyone planning to visit the schools should bring some form of government identification.

This information will be entered into the management system and visitors will be given a PIN (personal identification number) to use when visiting a school in the district.

The system was installed last January at Cody High School and shortly after spring break at middle school. It was installed in elementary schools, the last buildings in the neighborhood to be modernized, over the summer.

“It’s been working really well,” Sunset Elementary School principal Jay McCarten said. “Knowing the technology and helping parents enter their information correctly takes a bit of time, but once it’s taken care of, it’s pretty smooth.”

Visitors will be prompted by an iPad screen to answer questions regarding the purpose of their visit and who they intend to visit.

An email is automatically sent to the person being visited, notifying them that someone is at school to see them, and a visitor’s pass is printed. Once the visitor has verified on the iPad, another email is sent indicating that the person has left.

“I was very impressed with how it works,” McCarten said. “Any additional measures we can put in place to keep our children safe are important.”

The assigned PIN will allow access to any school in the district, so parents with children in more than one school will only have one PIN to remember.

The district would like to remind parents to bring proper identification when visiting schools.

This story was published on September 14, 2022.