For IT and operations leaders, ensuring network continuity is foundational.

The Reality: School Safety Depends on Always-On Connectivity

• According to the National Center for Education Statistics, over 90% of U.S. public schools report at least one safety concern, yet many lack the resilient infrastructure required to respond during emergencies.

• At the same time, in-building connectivity remains a widespread issue. A national study of K-12 facilities found that 52% of school buildings failed at least one area of wireless signal testing, meaning phones, radios, or emergency alerts may not work reliably throughout the campus.

In an emergency, partial coverage isn’t good enough. Communication must work everywhere — classrooms, hallways, gyms, cafeterias, and outdoor areas.

When Connectivity Fails, Consequences Are Real

The risks of unreliable communication aren’t theoretical. They’ve played out in real incidents.

During the 2022 Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas, multiple investigative reports cited communication breakdowns as a major factor that delayed response. Officers inside the building were unable to communicate clearly with those outside or with dispatch, severely impacting coordination.

In other documented incidents nationwide, schools experienced failures where:

• VoIP systems went down during power or ISP outages
• Staff could not dial 911 due to network dependency
• Emergency alerts failed to reach all buildings simultaneously
• First responders lacked accurate location data

Why Redundancy Matters for IT & Ops

Most school networks were designed for learning, not crisis scenarios. When a single internet provider, fiber line, or local network failure takes down phones and alerts, schools are left exposed. Power outages, construction accidents, weather events, or service provider disruptions happen every year, and schools are not immune.

For IT and operations teams, the question isn’t if an outage will occur — it’s whether critical systems will stay online when it does.

The Role of Failover and Satellite Connectivity

Network continuity requires layered redundancy and it must be designed intentionally for school environments.

Failover Connectivity

Failover connectivity ensures that if a primary network or ISP goes down, traffic automatically shifts to a secondary connection, keeping phones, emergency notifications, access controls, and E911 systems online without manual intervention. Premier Wireless specializes in architecting these failover environments for K-12 campuses, ensuring critical systems remain operational even during power outages or provider disruptions.

As a Pinnacle Partner with T-Mobile, Premier deploys failover solutions that run on T-Mobile’s nationwide wireless network, providing reliable coverage that doesn’t depend on local internet infrastructure. This allows schools to maintain communication even when fiber lines are cut or on-site networks fail — a scenario that has occurred repeatedly during storms, construction incidents, and regional outages.

Satellite Connectivity

Satellite connectivity adds another layer of resilience by bypassing terrestrial infrastructure altogether. When wired and wireless networks are unavailable or congested, satellite connections continue to function — making them especially valuable during large-scale emergencies, natural disasters, or prolonged outages. Premier has extensive experience deploying satellite solutions as part of comprehensive school safety strategies, ensuring continuity for mission-critical communication when traditional networks are compromised.

Together, failover and satellite connectivity create a robust safety net — one that Premier Wireless has helped schools implement nationwide to protect students, staff, and first responders under even the most challenging conditions.

Building a Safer, More Resilient Campus

Connectivity is the backbone of school safety. Without it, compliance requirements like Kari’s Law and Ray Baum’s Act become harder to meet, emergency response slows, and liability increases.

IT and operations leaders play a critical role in protecting their campuses by ensuring that communication systems are resilient, redundant, and always available — not just during the school day, but during emergencies when every second matters.

Strengthen Your School’s Safety Infrastructure

Premier Wireless helps K-12 schools design and deploy failover and satellite connectivity solutions that keep critical communication systems online, even during outages and emergencies.

If you’d like to speak with one of our school safety connectivity experts, they can help you assess your current infrastructure and design failover and satellite solutions that keep critical communication systems online.

Call: 281-667-0404Email: sales@pwbts.com