School Panic Button Systems: Alyssa's Law Buyer's Guide 2026

When something goes wrong on campus, the person who spots it first is rarely near a phone, and raising their voice is often the last thing they want to do. What they need is a way to get a silent alert to the right people inside the building and to police outside it, in the time it takes to press a button.

That is the core problem behind evaluating panic button systems for schools, and it is also the problem Alyssa's Law now forces a growing list of states to solve on a deadline.

The short answer: look for a system that meets your state's actual statute, reaches every part of campus, routes to 911 and first responders, and connects to the cameras and door access already running your buildings.

TL;DR

• Thirteen states have passed some form of Alyssa's Law, but they do not all require the same thing. Four mandate installation, three require districts only to consider it, and two permit it subject to funding.
• Evaluate systems on five things: what your statute actually says, campus-wide coverage, how the alert reaches 911, activation speed and discretion, and whether the alert connects to your cameras and doors.
• Centegix has the largest deployed badge network in K-12 and, since April and July 2026, a reunification and visitor product line and a camera and door integration through partners. Raptor runs a dedicated long-range badge network and routes to 911 dispatch. Navigate360 sells the button inside a wider suite. Avigilon fits organizations already on Alta. CrisisGo connects hardware a district already owns. Coram puts the button on the same platform as its Video Security and Access Control.
• Two deadlines are ahead of you: West Virginia rulemaking by 31 December 2026, and Illinois taking effect 1 January 2027. Georgia's passed on 1 July 2026 and repeats every July.
• Buy for your statute first, then for how the alert connects to everything else. Nearly every vendor here claims compliance, so that column separates almost nobody.

What School Panic Buttons Are

A school panic button is a device that lets a staff member request help silently, with one action, and sends location and incident type to whoever is configured to receive it.

Most presses are not active-shooter events. They are medical emergencies, student behavioral crises, staff safety concerns, and unauthorized visitors. That matters for buying: a system used a few times a week for a seizure or a fight in a hallway has to be something staff carry and trust, not something they have to be trained back into every August.

How to Evaluate a School Panic Button System

Every system does the same basic thing. Someone presses a button, an alert goes out. What separates them is the type of button and how well it performs once that alert fires.

Button Types

Wearable or badge. Worn on a lanyard or clipped to clothing, so the person does not have to reach for a phone or run to a fixed device. Common in K-12 because staff keep it on them all day, in the hallway, on the playground, on a field trip.

Phone app. Runs on a device staff already carry, which keeps hardware cost down, but only works if the phone is on hand, charged, and unlocked when it is needed.

Wall-mounted or fixed. Installed in classrooms, offices, and other high-traffic points. Always in the same place, and limited to wherever it is bolted down.

Silent versus audible. Silent alerts notify responders without telling anyone nearby, including a threat in the room. Audible alarms announce the emergency to everyone within earshot. Alyssa's Law is written around silent alerts, so this distinction carries more weight for compliance than the others.

Button type gets a system in the door. Whether it is worth buying comes down to five things.

Compliance With Your State's Statute

A system has to route a silent alert to law enforcement to count under most versions of the law, and states define "directly" differently. Some require a route to dispatch. Others accept a route through campus security first. Read the actual statute language before you trust a vendor's compliance badge.

Campus-Wide Coverage

Coverage gaps rarely show up on a spec sheet. They show up months in, when a coach presses a badge at the far end of the football field and nothing sends, or a bus loop sits just past the edge of the network's range.

Ask a vendor to walk through coverage in the specific spaces that get missed most: gymnasiums, athletic fields, parking lots, bus loops, portables, stairwells between buildings. "Full campus" should mean tested at your actual property lines, not just the main building.

Connection to 911 and First Responders

Some systems alert on-site administrators first and leave them to call 911. Others route to dispatch, cutting out the step where a person has to relay what is happening.

How much that matters depends on where you are. As one rural district put it: "This little town has no emergency services. So if you call 911, it takes 20, 30 minutes for anybody to get here." In a district like that, the routing question is really a question about how much the on-site response has to carry on its own.

Activation Speed and Discretion

A button that needs multiple steps, a specific app screen, or a steady hand under stress works against the person using it. Ask what happens to a press when the network drops. Does the button retry, queue, or fail silently? Vendors answer that very differently.

Integration With Cameras, Access Control, and Notifications

A panic alert tied into a building's school security cameras and access control can pull up live video for responders and lock doors the moment it is pressed. A standalone button sends a notification and leaves the rest of the response to whoever reads it first.

Alyssa's Law Compliance: What Schools Are Required to Do

Alyssa's Law is a family of state laws, not one standard. It is named for Alyssa Alhadeff, one of the students killed in the 2018 Parkland shooting, and the advocacy her family started afterward is what got the first version passed in New Jersey.

What the laws have in common is a silent panic alert connected to law enforcement, so a threat in the building never hears help being called. What they do not share is force.

• Mandatory installation: New Jersey (2019), Florida (2020), Texas (2023), Georgia (2025)
• Districts must consider it: New York (2022), Oregon (2025), Illinois (2026)
• Permitted, subject to funding: Virginia (2026), West Virginia (2026)
• Also enacted: Tennessee (2023), Utah (2024), Oklahoma (2024), Washington (2025)

That is thirteen states as of September 2026. Roughly a dozen more have legislation pending. Some trackers count higher by including states with similar mandates under a different name, including Louisiana's 2023 School Safety Act, which Make Our Schools Safe does not count. Check your own state's current statute before treating any published list, including this one, as final.

The Deadlines That Matter Right Now

Georgia's recurring July obligation is the one most districts miss. The mapping requirement does not end when the system is installed. It has to be re-verified annually, which makes it a line item in every budget cycle rather than a one-time project.

Districts in states with pending legislation are usually better off buying ahead of a mandate. Board approval, procurement, installation, and staff training routinely take months, and a district that waits for the law to pass typically spends the compliance window scrambling rather than choosing.

Quick Comparison: School Panic Button Systems

What Each Vendor Actually Does

Coram

Coram is an AI physical security platform, and the panic button is one capability inside Emergency Management rather than a standalone product.

The button itself is a small, battery-powered device worn on a lanyard, not a phone app. Two presses in quick succession activate the configured emergency type, confirmed by a flashing green light. The two-press design is deliberate: it is what keeps a pocket or a backpack strap from generating a false lockdown. Gateways bridge the buttons to Coram Emergency Management, and a single gateway supports multiple buttons with up to 1 km of range.

Emergency types align with the Standard Response Protocol staff already drill on (Evacuate, Lockdown, Secure, Shelter, Hold). Because the button runs on the same platform as Coram Video Security and Coram Access Control, a triggered alert sits in the same view the security team already checks, alongside the camera feeds for that location.

On 911, Automatic Dispatch is live across all 50 states and DC and is included in the Emergency Management SKUs at no extra cost. When a camera detection started the emergency, the triggering video clip carries through to dispatch, and dispatch status shows live in the emergency view. There is also a manual Call 911 button, restricted to staff with the emergency caller permission. Four qualifiers travel with all of that: it is rolling out to eligible organizations, it is enabled per organization on request rather than on by default, it requires a validated location address, and an administrator has to enable it per emergency type.

Best for: districts that want the panic button on the same platform running their cameras and door access, rather than adding a fifth or sixth standalone safety vendor.

Strengths:

• Works with the cameras, readers, locks, and controllers a district already owns, so adding Emergency Management does not start with a hardware replacement project.
• A firearm detection on an existing camera can escalate into an emergency, which puts detection and the button on the same workflow instead of relying on someone seeing the threat first.
• Two-press activation with a flashing green light confirmation keeps the trigger discreet and hard to fire by accident.
• One gateway covers multiple buttons at up to 1 km, so the base hardware scales without a gateway at every doorway.
• Automatic Dispatch is included rather than a paid add-on, and carries the triggering video clip to dispatch when a camera alert started the emergency.
• District-wide visibility and administration from one tenant, so a central team sees every campus without a login per building.
• CAP webhooks let a district keep the mass notification platform it already runs, including Rave, Everbridge, InformaCast, or Alertus.

Limitations:

• Coram does not do live mapping of a moving panic-button activation. Georgia's HB 268 requires critical incident mapping alongside the alert, so a Georgia public school treating that as a day-one requirement needs another vendor for the mapping piece.
• Coram's panic button is newer than the dedicated wearable networks. It does not carry the deployed-at-scale record Centegix or Raptor have built.
• Only Coram-supplied buttons pair with Coram gateways. The platform works with existing cameras and door hardware, but not with panic buttons a district already owns.
• SIS rostering supports Clever and CSV. Districts on PowerSchool, Skyward, or Infinite Campus should confirm the import path before committing.
• Five emergency types per organization is a hard cap, and each button maps to one type.
• Reunification runs online only, and lockdown does not auto-release.

Centegix

Centegix runs the largest wearable badge network in K-12: more than 835,000 CrisisAlert badge users, 18,000 campuses, and 18 million people covered. Its 2026 trends report is built on over 346,000 real alerts from the last school year, which is usage data almost nobody else in this category publishes.

Two things changed its shape in 2026. In April it acquired Pikmykid, absorbing reunification, visitor management, dismissal, and attendance. In July it shipped a Rhombus partnership where a badge press surfaces Rhombus camera feeds and triggers a lockdown sequence through Rhombus Access Control, alongside Location-Aware Video, which auto-surfaces the four nearest cameras on activation.

Centegix is the better fit for a district that wants the most proven badge network available and is comfortable buying its video and door integration through partnerships.

Best for: districts standardizing on wearable badges across every building, where the badge and its mapping are the priority.

Strengths:

• A badge worn on a lanyard all day, with no app or phone needed to trigger.
• Digital mapping and real-time location data pinpoint where an alert came from, which is directly relevant to Georgia's mapping requirement.
• Real usage data at scale, rather than vendor claims, from more than 346,000 alerts.
• Dedicated Alyssa's Law resources with state-by-state guidance, which shortens the research a district has to do itself.
• Proven multi-year implementation, including a five-year Cumberland County agreement approved in February 2026.

Limitations:

• The camera and access control integration comes through separate vendors, separate contracts, and separate tenants. It is a partnership, not one platform with one login.
• Badges cover people, not fixed spaces, so a district that also wants wall-mounted buttons in offices or common areas needs a second device type.

Navigate360

Navigate360 sells the panic button inside a wider safety suite that includes visitor management, volunteer tracking, and emergency management, synced to the district's SIS. The button supports a choice of activation: wearable badge, phone app, or geofencing trigger.

Its buyer-facing material is unusually good. The case studies and webinars are built around real district response timelines rather than product specs.

Best for: districts that want visitor management, volunteer tracking, and the panic button under one login and one contract.

Strengths:

• Three activation methods, so a district can mix badges for teachers with the app for administrators.
• SIS sync keeps staff and student data current across every tool in the suite.
• Case studies built on district response timelines rather than feature lists.

Limitations:

• The panic button is not sold on its own. A district buys the suite.
• No native tie-in to video or access control, so a triggered alert does not pull camera footage or lock a door by itself.
• Volunteer tracking and dismissal are outside what Coram covers, so a district that needs those is comparing different scopes, not the same product at different prices.

Avigilon

Avigilon's panic buttons plug into Avigilon Alta, the same cloud platform running Avigilon's video and access control. Documented triggers are the Alta mobile app, designated card credentials at a reader, and third-party wired or IoT buttons.

A trigger can activate a building-wide Flexible Lockdown plan, and the platform supports both cloud and on-prem deployment for districts with mixed infrastructure. That native tie-in is real for districts already on Avigilon hardware.

Best for: organizations already running Avigilon Alta that want the panic button on the dashboard they already use.

Strengths:

• Native integration with Alta video and access control puts everything on one dashboard.
• Supports cloud and on-prem deployment, useful for districts with mixed infrastructure.
• Open platform designed to integrate with systems already in place.

Limitations:

• Lockdown plans are gated to the Premium and Enterprise licence tiers. Openpath's own help centre directs customers to contact a sales representative to request lockdown functionality, so treat it as a paid capability rather than an included one.
• Framed around general lockdown response rather than built for Alyssa's Law, so the district carries the state-specific compliance research itself.
• The native tie-in only helps districts already on Alta. Adding it elsewhere means adopting the platform, not just the button.

Raptor

Raptor Badge Alert is a wearable panic button on a dedicated long-range network that routes alerts to 911 dispatch with location and incident type attached automatically. It launched in 2025 on a managed LoRa network, which works where school Wi-Fi and cellular coverage do not.

Raptor has the K-12 footprint to back its claims: over 7,300 US districts and 60,000 schools across 55 countries. Badge Alert folds into Raptor's Emergency Management suite (Drill Manager, Accountability, Reunification), with an Alertus partnership layer for mass notification hardware.

Best for: K-12 districts already running Raptor's emergency management suite that want a dedicated wearable badge layered on top.

Strengths:

• Runs on a managed LoRa network rather than school Wi-Fi, so coverage holds in the gymnasium, the bus loop, and the portables.
• Alerts route to 911 dispatch with location and incident type attached.
• Folds into Drill Manager, Accountability, and Reunification for districts already on the platform.
• The largest K-12 footprint of any vendor here.

Limitations:

• No native tie-in to video or access control. The badge network runs alongside a district's cameras and doors rather than inside them.
• The dedicated network is additional infrastructure to install and maintain on top of whatever wireless the district already runs.

CrisisGo

CrisisGo is a software layer that connects to the panic buttons, badges, sensors, and cameras a district already owns, rather than selling one fixed device. Its Safety iResponse and Safety OneClick platforms consolidate panic alerts, tip lines, and threat reporting into one console. Safety OneClick wireless buttons run on a managed LoRaWAN network via AWS IoT, reducing dependence on district Wi-Fi.

CrisisGo is the better fit for a district with safety tools from four different vendors that wants one console tying them together, rather than a district starting from scratch.

Best for: districts consolidating tools they already own.

Strengths:

• Connects to third-party buttons, badges, sensors, and cameras already deployed, so the existing investment keeps working.
• Alerts are configurable from a staff-assist request through to a full lockdown.
• Publishes partner pricing, which is rare in this category and useful for a first budget estimate.

Limitations:

• Performance depends partly on the age and quality of the hardware it connects to, since CrisisGo does not manufacture the button.
• A district with no existing panic hardware gets less out of it than one consolidating.

How to Choose a Panic Button System for Your District

The right system depends less on which vendor has the longest feature list and more on what your district looks like: how many buildings, how the money is coming, and what is already installed.

One Building vs. Multi-Campus

A single school with one main building can get by with a smaller deployment: a handful of gateways, badges for full-time staff, and a system sized to one property line.

A multi-campus district is a different problem. Coverage has to hold across buildings that may be miles apart. Alerts need to reach the right building's administrators and the right SRO without pushing a notification to every campus in the district. Gateway range and count become real planning variables rather than spec sheet numbers. Coram, for example, licenses three gateways and 100 buttons per site, with one gateway per floor recommended, so a four-story high school and a single-story elementary are not the same line item.

Ask any vendor to walk through a deployment plan building by building before it goes to the board.

How the Money Is Coming

Districts working with SVPP, state school safety grant money, or a passed bond can prioritize the system that fits best, since the deadline is usually the funding window rather than the district's own budget cycle. Application timing matters more than sticker price here: most state safety grants open and close on a fixed annual cycle, and missing one means waiting a year.

Districts without that cushion are choosing between a smaller rollout now, badges without camera integration, or a fuller system phased across a few budget cycles. As one district safety lead put it: "No, we're a small district. I don't have a grant. I am the grant team."

Either way, ask what a vendor's pricing model actually charges for, since that decides how cost scales as the district grows:

• Per building or per campus. Predictable, and it punishes districts with many small sites.
• Per badge or per device. Scales with headcount, and the number quietly grows every hiring season.
• Per user seat. Coram prices this way, on 1, 3, 5, or 10-year terms, with buttons and gateways sold at cost.
• Flat district contract. Centegix and Raptor both work this way, usually multi-year.

Two vendors here publish something you can put in a board packet. CrisisGo lists partner pricing at $2,520 per school per year for up to 500 students. Avigilon's lockdown capability sits behind a licence tier, which is a cost question dressed as a feature question. Everyone else quotes.

Buyers Who Need It to Work With What They Already Have

A district that already has cameras, access control, or a mass notification system has a narrower question: does the new panic button talk to those systems, or does it become one more login and one more dashboard?

Ask directly what happens the moment the button is pressed. Does it pull up the nearest camera? Does it lock a door? Or does it send a notification and leave the rest to staff?

Two answers are worth separating. Sharing a platform with your cameras and doors is one thing, and only Coram and Avigilon offer it natively here. Keeping the notification tools you already run is another, and it is often the cheaper win: Coram's CAP webhooks push alerts into Rave, Everbridge, InformaCast, or Alertus, so a district does not have to rip out a mass notification contract it already signed.

One caveat that cuts against the platform argument, and is worth knowing before the demo: the panic button hardware itself is not interchangeable. Coram gateways pair with Coram buttons only. CrisisGo is the one vendor here built to adopt buttons a district already owns.

Rolling It Out

Installation is the easy part. The projects that go badly are the ones where the hardware went in on schedule and nobody could say who gets the alert at 7pm on a Saturday.

Budget months, not weeks, for the parts that are not hardware: mapping coverage against your actual property lines, agreeing the escalation path with your SRO and local dispatch, and drilling staff on the button as part of the drills they already run. If a vendor's implementation plan is mostly install dates, ask what the training and drill schedule looks like in month three.

Getting the Alert to the Right People, Fast

Every vendor here is solving the same problem differently. Some through a dedicated wearable network, some through a bundled suite, some by connecting to whatever a district already owns. None of it matters if the alert does not reach a person who can act on it.

Coram helps districts modernize school safety without replacing the cameras and door hardware they already have. Video Security, Access Control, Guest Management, and Emergency Management run in one system, so a badge press, the camera covering that hallway, and the doors around it are in one view rather than three. Automatic Dispatch routes the alert to 911 across all 50 states and DC, included in Emergency Management rather than sold as an add-on.

The system that fits is not necessarily the one with the longest feature list. It is the one a district's staff will use correctly, without hesitating, three years after the sales demo is over.

If you are building the vendor shortlist now, take the five evaluation criteria above into the demo and make each vendor answer them against your own buildings. For a closer look at how the wearable form factor works in practice, see wearable panic buttons for employees.