EdTech Leader Chris Burton Says This Will Matter

Chris Burton, Executive Vice President of Experiences and Design at Sign In Solutions, joins EdTech Chronicle to discuss why modern visitor management technology will be transformative for schools navigating growing security challenges alongside budget uncertainty. In this Q&A-style feature, Burton outlines what's fixable, what will persist, and where the biggest gaps in school safety strategy lie today.

Burton points to a striking statistic: only 40% of U.S. public schools report feeling "very prepared" to handle intruders, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Yet many schools still rely on manual systems — paper logbooks that can't be searched during emergencies, cross-referenced for patterns, or audited for compliance. A visitor flagged at one campus can easily sign in at another because there's no way to share information between manual systems.

The article explores what Burton sees as the most overlooked gap in education security: the disconnect between digital literacy training and physical security operations. Schools invest heavily in cybersecurity awareness but fail to recognise that visitor management is equally data-driven and requires similar systematic thinking. Front office staff need training on risk pattern recognition, not just protocol compliance.

Looking ahead three to five years, Burton identifies the central tension: schools must remain welcoming while implementing stricter visitor management protocols. Universities in particular risk backlash if security feels overly "policing," which can impact student trust. The answer, he argues, is technology that makes security feel positive and dignified — reinforcing a school's values rather than working against them.

Key Takeaways

• The preparedness gap is real — Only 40% of U.S. public schools feel "very prepared" to handle intruders; manual visitor systems are a major vulnerability.
• Security doesn't have to feel cold — Technology can make visitor management positive, dignified, and aligned with a school's welcoming values.
• The overlooked training gap — Schools over-invest in cybersecurity awareness but neglect physical visitor management as a data-driven discipline requiring pattern recognition skills.
• Emergency readiness requires integration — Too many schools train for lockdowns without ensuring their visitor tracking systems can instantly account for all non-students on campus.
• Scalable solutions exist today — Sign In Solutions reduces visitor entrance management time by 80% with 30-minute setup, trusted by 6,000+ schools worldwide.
• Leadership mindset shift needed — Decision-makers must view visitor management as a foundational safety and intelligence platform, not a simple administrative function.

Read the full article — Originally published in EdTech Chronicle.