SHERMAN, TX -- It's the first week back to school for most students in North Texas and for students in the Sherman Independent School District, there's is a new security system in place. Administrators say it's providing a more monitored and safer environment for everyone. Shelby Levins reports.

It's called Raptor. The program was installed in all 13 Sherman ISD campuses this summer. Some Sherman schools already had similar security programs that required visitors to scan their driver's licenses before being allowed inside the school, but now all schools in SISD are using the Raptor system.

The first week back to school is an exciting time, but for some parents it can also bring about some safety concerns - from street crossings to strangers.

"My little girl is pretty safe she knows all the rules - she's not allowed to talk to strangers,” said Brandy Barnard, a SISD parent, said.

But now parents like Barnard feel a little safer. Neblett Elementary, and every school in the district, is now equipped with an ID scanning system and software - called Raptor - that cross references against a national sex offender database.

"It makes me feel a lot safer knowing there's not a sex offender roaming the campus,” Barnard said.

The program requires you scan you driver license or other government issued ID face down. Then the security doors are unlocked once an administrator sees the visitor's information and clears it.

"It prevents anyone that might be a sexual offender or have any type of restraining order on a student that goes here,” Kristi Schlipp, an attendance clerk at Neblett Elementary school, said.

The whole process takes less than a minute. Administrators stress Raptor is not put in place to discourage parents from visiting, but to protect the children.

"It is for the safety of the children which needs to be at the forefront of our minds at all times,” Billy McCoy, Neblett Elementary Assistant principal, said.

Administrators say the program will provide better monitored environments, so students can focus more on their goals like -

"having fun and getting good grades,” student Quavontay Cox said.

And for parents like Barnard, Raptor provides an even more secure campus, that allows her to look forward to a safer school year for her daughter.

"I've always felt safe in Sherman schools, so it's nice to feel just a little safer, Barnard said.

The program cost about $1,500 per campus, and the total price tag is about $20,000 for the district.

Administrators say some of the funds came from stimulus money, the rest was paid from SISD's budget.