Upgraded Phones to Enhance Safety and Connectivity, Reduce Costs

The Long Beach Unified School District will deploy a new phone system across all schools and administrative offices, with full installation expected in 2024. The project will replace the District's existing telephones, which no longer receive manufacturer support.

Funded in part by the District's Measure E bond program, the new phone system utilizes Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology to convert calls into data and transmit them over the Internet. Instead of plugging into standard wall jacks, VoIP phones will connect to computers and tap into the District’s data network to link calls. In classrooms, wall-mounted telephones will be replaced with VoIP phones conveniently located at teachers' desks.

The new phone system will reduce the District’s telecommunications costs and introduce features that enhance school safety and staff connectivity.

Emergency calls placed from VoIP phones spark a series of automatic notifications designed to shorten the arrival time of first responders. Alerts to local fire and police stations will relay key caller information, including the general location inside a school building or office where the emergency call originated. Notices will also deliver to LBUSD's School Safety office.

The system's voicemail to email service will help staff manage voice messages from any location from the convenience of their email inbox.

The project will begin this year with installations at District’s main office building. Facilities staff, in collaboration with Technology and Information Services, will go building-by-building to replace more than 9,000 phones over the project's two-year period.