Cameras Could Be Installed in Classrooms in These States

A growing number of states could soon install cameras in school classrooms.

Last year, video cameras were installed in classrooms at high schools in Georgia's Effingham County, with the school board superintendent saying the move was part of an effort to "ramp up security measures within the district."

Lawmakers in some Republican-led states have introduced legislation to install cameras in classrooms. Some proponents have touted cameras as a way for parents to be more involved in their children's education, while critics have suggested the cameras are intended to monitor teachers and what they teach. In some states, cameras are required in special education classrooms in an effort to protect students with special needs, particularly those who are nonverbal and unable to speak up for themselves.

Here, Newsweek rounds up the states where cameras have been installed in at least some classrooms, as well as others that could follow suit.

Alabama

School districts in Alabama are required to install cameras in special education classrooms after legislation was signed by Governor Kay Ivey last year.

The legislation allows school districts to apply for the cameras to be fully funded by the state.

State Senator Arthur Orr, the bill's sponsor, said he came up with the legislation after a parent expressed concern when her special needs child came home from school with injuries. He told a local news station that the cameras were there to protect children's safety and would also protect teachers from false accusations.

Florida

State Senator Erin Grall filed legislation last week that would require video cameras to be placed in certain public school classrooms, including charter school classrooms. The bill states that a school district must provide a video camera to each school with a self-contained classroom, and charter schools must do the same.

A "self-contained classroom" is defined in the bill as a classroom at a public or charter school in which "at least one student in regular attendance is nonverbal and is provided special educational services."

Georgia

The Effingham County School Board approved more than $2 million to install the Kloud-12 camera system in every high school classroom. Superintendent Yancy Ford said in September that middle schools would soon have cameras and they would be installed in elementary schools in the spring of 2024, according to WTOC in Savannah.

As well as increasing safety, the cameras would be used to commend teachers and could also be used to combat bullying, Ford said.

Newsweek has contacted Ford for further comment via email.

Louisiana

Lawmakers allocated $8 million for the installation of cameras in special education classrooms in 2022. State law requires school districts to install a camera in a classroom if a parent of a special needs child requests it.

Last May, questions were raised about what had happened to the funds allocated for the cameras.

Ethan Melancon, director of governmental affairs with the state's Education Department, told lawmakers that the issue was a "priority" but that cameras could be installed only if requested.

"That money is going to sit in those accounts until a parent or advocates ask for a camera," Melancon said. "We cannot force them to all put cameras in the classroom."

Nevada

A Nevada Republican introduced a bill during last year's legislative session that would require surveillance cameras to be installed in special education classrooms.

Former state Senator Scott Hammond, who brought back the legislation after it failed to pass in previous years, told The Nevada Independent: "What I'm asking for in this particular bill is really to try and protect those kids who are nonverbal, who aren't really able to communicate what's been going on with them in the classroom."

Texas

Mike Miles announced a series of changes after he was appointed superintendent of the Houston Independent School District and tasked with turning it around. Among them was the use of cameras in classrooms to handle disciplinary matters.

"Every classroom has a webcam and a Zoom link, and it's on 24/7," he told Houston Public Media last year. "If a kid is disruptive, we pull that student out of class. We put them in what we call a team center, and they're being monitored by a learning coach, and they Zoom right back into the class they get pulled from."

Are you a parent or teacher with thoughts on cameras in school classrooms? Get in touch by emailing k.rahman@newsweek.com.