Harrisonburg City Public Schools are looking to implement a new weapons detection system in the high school before the end of the school year.

During a work session, Chief Operating Officer Shawn Printz presented the Opengate system, which can detect weapons in backpacks, purses, and bags using artificial intelligence.

Superintendent Dr. Michael Richards said bias was a concern around other A-I based detectors that rely on facial recognition – but he says this system works differently.

These systems will not need facial recognition. It will only recognize certain shapes and objects in bags, as well as densities of chemicals.

Richards added that parents will be notified via letter before the pilot launches, likely sometime in April.

This all comes on the heels of last Thursday’s bomb threat at Harrisonburg High, which was eventually declared a hoax.