Big brother in the hallways? AI cameras watch thousands of NJ students’ every move

🔴 AI-powered cameras now monitor tens of thousands of New Jersey students.

🔴 New tech can detect guns in seconds, but raises fears about student tracking.

🔴 Lawmakers push new rules as AI surveillance rapidly expands in schools.

Super advanced cameras powered by artificial intelligence have students at New Jersey schools under constant surveillance.

Several school districts are already using AI cameras, including the state's largest district. Newark schools signed a $12 million contract to install 7,700 cameras to watch its 44,000 students. The AI cameras were up and running at the start of this school year.

In South Jersey, the Glassboro Public School District is the first to partner with a company that uses AI to find firearms in schools. ZeroEyes boasts that it's the "first AI-based gun detection video analytics platform" with federal recognition.

The ZeroEyes cameras will monitor nearly 2,000 students, Pre-K through 12th grade, and 350 staff throughout four Glassboro schools. If a gun is detected, mass alerts can be sent within seconds to students' phones and digital signage throughout the buildings.

“The safety of our students and staff is our top priority, and this integration adds a critical new layer of protection," said Craig Stephenson, GPSD assistant superintendent.

Privacy concerns grow over student surveillance and data tracking

While schools can use AI cameras to detect firearms, districts can also choose to flag behaviors like vaping. State lawmakers worry this could get out of control if left unchecked.

Assemblyman Cody Miller, D-Gloucester, said the technology raises questions about whether these cameras are capturing biometric facial-recognition data, tracking patterns of student behavior, and who gets that information.

"I understand that people have privacy concerns. I do as well. Artificial intelligence is essentially evolving as we speak. We need to worry about safety, privacy, and data because this is not just going to be for schools. This is going to be for everything we use going forward," Miller said.

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Cameras that use facial recognition have already drawn controversy. In 2022, a mom with her daughter's Girl Scouts troop was turned away from Radio City Music Hall, which is owned by Madison Square Garden Entertainment.

A camera detected that Kelly Conlon was an attorney with a New Jersey law firm engaged in a legal battle with a restaurant owned by MSGE. However, Conlon said she didn't practice in New York and never worked on the case.

READ MORE: Violent NJ rapist convicted in Irvington dog walker attack spree

Legislation pushes transparency for AI in New Jersey schools

A bill (A1323) that would require school districts to have transparent and clear guidelines for AI surveillance. That includes any systems with AI capabilities, including cameras, X-ray machines, and body scanners.

Under the proposed law, schools would need to notify parents about the district's rules around AI surveillance. Schools would also have to post signs throughout their buildings to notify when surveillance is in use.

It passed nearly unanimously in the General Assembly last month. The legislation is now moving through the state Senate; it was referred to the Senate Education Committee last week.

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