Civil Municipal Magazine - Nov 2023

173 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 4, ISSUE 11 CHAT TAHOOCHEE COUNT Y SCHOOL DISTRICT of several new buses built in 2020 or 2021. This marks a definite step in the right direction, as students could be ensured a higher level of safety when on the road. To complement that, the school district most recently invested in a program called Gaggle, a program that allowed staff and faculty to monitor and identify keywords of interest or concern in the chats of any students communicating over school-provided programs and networks. “So many times these students are in chats on, on different programs that they have. And if a keyword is identified, even for self-harm or for a situation of some type of abuse that they may be in their home, that 24/7 support from Gaggle alerts our key responders so that we can assist and intervene as necessary,” Brooks explains. Chattahoochee County has also made attempts to improve not just its student’s safety but their overall comfort as well. The district recently signed a lease for a multimillion- dollar investment that had its HVAC system overhauled because, at one point, close to 50% of the system’s machinery was either inoperable or nearing the end of its life cycle. While it was hefty, it was one that, according to Brooks, “needed to happen.” Chattahoochee County’s investment in school infrastructure is a testament to its commitment to excellence.