Security

Overseeing Physical Security as an IT Professional

K–12 CIOs discuss the commonalities between their physical security and cybersecurity responsibilities.

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Alexandra Frost is a Cincinnati-based freelance journalist, content marketing writer, copywriter and editor published in The Washington Post, Glamour, Shape, Today’s Parent, Reader’s Digest, Parents, Women’s Health and Insider. Alex has a Master of Arts in Teaching degree and a bachelor’s degree in mass communications/journalism, both from Miami University near Cincinnati. She also taught high school for 10 years, specializing in media education.

As physical security systems in K–12 schools grow more sophisticated, the lines between IT and facilities management departments continue to blur. Increasingly, IT professionals — traditionally tasked with securing networks and data — are now overseeing badge access systems, surveillance cameras, emergency alerts and other campus safety technologies.

This shift reflects the digital transformation of school infrastructure, as well as the growing demand for integrated, tech-enabled security strategies that protect students and staff in real time.

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In some districts, technology leaders such as CTOs and IT directors are acquiring physical security responsibilities, holding positions on school physical security teams in addition to their original roles.

Here’s what it means for schools and K–12 IT leaders as physical security and cybersecurity become increasingly interwoven:

K–12 CIOs Have a Big-Picture View of Security

Jason Koenig is the CIO at Colorado’s Cherry Creek School District. Spread across more than 100 square miles, the district has 86 campuses and around 53,000 students and 10,000 staffers, he says.

Though his role is challenging, Koenig says, there’s value in asking physical security personnel their opinions on cybersecurity, and vice versa. As the CIO, he’s been able to cross-train both teams for a more well-rounded overall security posture. He says he wants his tech team and his security team to be able to look at each other’s processes and say, “We know how this stuff works.”

There’s a lot of overlap between the cyber world and the physical world: the techniques, the tactics, an offense and a defense. All of those things are very similar in both worlds.”

Jason Koenig CIO, Cherry Creek School District

In the two years since Kris Hagel, CIO at Washington’s Peninsula School District, has overseen physical security, he’s had a similar experience. “I can see the whole picture,” he says of physical security and cybersecurity in his district. “It also helps to have school safety officers who are former law enforcement officers. They have a vision and a view of what is needed in the buildings.”

He adds that the school safety officers often bring him recommendations for new security technology investments. “It’s helpful to hear from them regularly on what they see and what’s going on.”

A suburban school district south of Seattle, Peninsula School District serves more than 8,000 kids and has about 1,200 employees and 19 total facilities, 17 of which are school buildings, Hagel says.

K–12 Physical Security and Cybersecurity Both Rely On Barriers

Cybersecurity and physical security share a common mission: buying more time to react.

“There’s a lot of overlap between the cyber world and the physical world: the techniques, the tactics, an offense and a defense. All of those things are very similar in both worlds,” Koenig says. “The tools used and the ways that we can put barriers in are very different.”

Physical security barriers include door locks, window lamination and technologies such as visitor management systems. Koenig notes that these deterrents allow time for law enforcement response.

In cybersecurity, those barriers may be firewalls, multifactor authentication or other solutions that give schools time to decide how to react, Koenig says.

DIVE DEEPER: Incident response helps schools quickly recover from cyberattacks.

People Are a Necessary Element of All K–12 Security Measures

One common element in strong physical security and cybersecurity postures is people. The people working in a school district must know how to interact with the technology to best protect their schools.

Peninsula School District is seeing success with the implementation of monthly three- to five-minute surveys about cybersecurity safety. “I am starting to see a lot more people flag things in our ticketing system, saying, ‘Hey, this doesn’t look right. Can you check this out for me?’ rather than clicking on links,” Hagel says.

For physical security, “it’s making sure the right people have access to the right things at the right time, whether it’s cameras or access control or our emergency announcement system,” Koenig says. “We have a Valcom announcement system for the bell schedules, and we make sure if new staff comes in that they have immediate access to that system.”

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Funding Challenges for K–12 Security

When looking to implement the right barriers and other protections for K–12 school security, difficulty funding these investments is another commonality between physical security and cybersecurity.

For physical security upgrades, schools are frequently turning to supplemental sources of funding, such as grants and bonds.

Meanwhile, CoSN’s 2025 State of EdTech District Leadership report found that, in lieu of cybersecurity-specific funding, 61% of respondents used general funds for cybersecurity solutions in their schools.

Tight budgets can make it difficult to put ideal security measures in place.

“We were a victim of the big, powerful data breach this year,” Hagel says. “We’re still a huge target as a K–12 institution. All K–12 institutions are. Trying to do what we know is best, with the funding that we have, is really challenging.”

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