Evolv Technology Helps Makes School Safer in Central Illinois

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High school students and teachers say the focus is back on learning

WALTHAM, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- When students returned to the classroom following months of remote learning due to the pandemic, schools went back to making decisions about the best ways to keep students safe. For the Champaign Unit 4 School District in central Illinois, the solution has been the leader in weapons detection security screening, Evolv Technology (NASDAQ: EVLV). Champaign is using Evolv Express® at its Central and Centennial high schools, with impressive early results.

The Champaign school board’s decision to partner with Evolv was made after a number of security incidents, including students who were found carrying handguns, BB guns and knives, threats made via social media, and a shooting at a neighboring high school. To proactively address potential violence, the district instituted wand checks conducted by teachers and administrators. However, manually wanding students led to long lines and missed learning. Some students were missing their first period class entirely due to waiting up to two hours to enter school in the morning. Evolv has proven to be a more efficient method to help keep students, faculty, staff and visitors safe. In just its first two months of use, Evolv screened more than 182,000 visitors to the two high schools and detected multiple weapons.

Evolv Express® uses powerful sensor technology with artificial intelligence (AI) to provide safer, more accurate threat detection at unprecedented volume and speed. Students walk right through without having to stop, speeding up the process and making them feel safer without being intrusive.

“With the metal detectors and wanding, the students felt like they were in jail,” said Valarian Couch, chief information officer for the Champaign Unit 4 School District. “They felt like they had to be searched for everything. But if they do not feel safe enough to come to school, at some point we have to put mechanisms in place. With Evolv, they feel like it’s just another day – they get to walk into school and not have any problems. The teachers too. To have a safe environment and for the teachers to say, ‘Well, now we can actually start teaching,’ is huge.”

Two additional Express systems will be set up to screen fans at high school football games beginning this fall, and the district is looking at data provided by Evolv to determine whether to implement additional systems at the district’s middle schools. It is also working to integrate Evolv with its existing camera system for enhanced security.

“We believe no student should ever have concerns about security in school,” said Peter George, CEO of Evolv Technology. “We are happy to be working with the Champaign School District to help keep students and teachers safe and put the focus back in the classroom where it belongs.”

That sentiment is the basis behind GiveEvolv, an Evolv subsidiary, that donates Evolv’s state-of-the-art weapons detection at no cost to schools in need. Schools in areas impacted by gun violence that could not otherwise afford the technology are encouraged to apply for a grant at evolvtechnology.com/giveevolv.

About Champaign Unit 4 School District
Champaign Unit 4 School District 4 is a large unit school district serving more than 10,000 students in grades pre-K through 12 in Champaign, Savoy, and Bondville, Illinois. The diverse school community includes students hailing from 77 countries, speaking more than 80 different languages. The district’s 19 campuses employ more than 1,900 teachers, administrators, and support personnel.

About Evolv Technology
Evolv Technology (NASDAQ: EVLV) is transforming human security to make a safer, faster, and better experience for the world’s most iconic venues and companies as well as schools, hospitals, and public spaces, using industry leading artificial intelligence (AI)-powered weapons detection and analytics. Its mission is to transform security to create a safer world to work, learn, and play. Evolv has digitally transformed the gateways in places where people gather by enabling seamless integration with unparalleled analytics and insights. Evolv’s advanced systems have scanned more than 250 million people, second only to the Department of Homeland Security’s Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in the United States. Evolv has been awarded the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) SAFETY Act Designation as a Qualified Anti-Terrorism Technology (QATT) as well as the Security Industry Association (SIA) New Products and Solutions (NPS) Award in the Law Enforcement/Public Safety/Guarding Systems category. For more information, visit https://evolvtechnology.com.

Evolv Technology, Evolv Express®, Evolv Insights™, and Evolv Cortex AI™ are registered trademarks or trademarks of Evolv Technologies, Inc. in the United States and other jurisdictions.

For more information, visit https://evolvtechnology.com.

Forward-looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release may constitute “forward-looking” statements and information, within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that relate to our current expectations and views of future events. In some cases, these forward-looking statements can be identified by words or phrases such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “aim,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “potential,” “continue,” “is/are likely to” or other similar expressions. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions, some of which are beyond our control. In addition, these forward-looking statements reflect our current views with respect to future events or our Company’s performance and are not a guarantee of future performance. Actual outcomes may differ materially from the information contained in the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including, without limitation, the risk factors set forth in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended on December 31, 2021, that was filed with the SEC on March 28, 2022, and other documents filed with or furnished to the SEC. These statements reflect management’s current expectations regarding future events and operating performance and speak only as of the date of this press release. You should not put undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee that future results, levels of activity, performance and events and circumstances reflected in the forward-looking statements will be achieved or will occur. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date on which the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

Media Contact:
Alexandra Ozerkis
aozerkis@evolvtechnology.com

Investor Contact:
Brian Norris
bnorris@evolvtechnology.com

Source: Evolv Technology

Released June 28, 2022