Cleveland Residents to Protest $600,000 Flock Safety Contract Amid School Closures

Published: Aug 29, 2026 - 12:05 a.m.

By D Heckman

---

CLEVELAND, Ohio — While thousands of Cleveland Metropolitan School District students settle into their new academic routines, a local resident-led campaign is preparing to protest the district's ongoing financial commitment to high-tech surveillance. The group, known as Flock No, has scheduled two separate demonstrations for Sunday, Aug. 30, to challenge the district's priorities following a wave of recent school closures. The events, which organizers have titled the CMSD Back-to-School Birding Expedition, focus on the district's $600,000 annual contract with Flock Safety. The company provides automated license plate recognition cameras and AI-driven monitoring software. According to the Flock No campaign, this spending is difficult to justify at a time when the district has shuttered 18 buildings and more than 30 schools across the city. Residents involved in the campaign are calling for the funds to be stripped from the surveillance budget and moved directly into classrooms or educator salaries. The pushback in Cleveland is not happening in a vacuum. Flock Safety has faced increased scrutiny nationwide following reports of data misuse by various law enforcement agencies. In Northeast Ohio, privacy advocates have raised concerns about how much data is collected on residents and who has access to it. The Birding Expedition name is a play on words, as participants intend to spot the surveillance cameras installed around school properties. The Sunday morning action begins on the city's West Side at Newton D. Baker School of the Arts. Supporters will meet at 9:30 a.m. at the corner of West 165th Street and Dartmouth Avenue, near the exit side of the school building. The neighborhood has seen significant changes in recent years, and many parents feel the district's investment in cameras does not address the core needs of the student body. The afternoon session shifts to the East Side at Collinwood High School. That gathering is scheduled for 1 p.m. at the campus at 15210 Saint Clair Ave. Organizers chose the two locations to represent the citywide impact of the district's recent budgetary decisions. Those interested in attending the Sunday events or learning more about the specific locations of the cameras are encouraged to contact the Flock No campaign through its community outreach channels. -------------------- At Cleveland 13 News, we strive to provide accurate, up-to-date, and reliable reporting. If you spot an error, omission, or have information that may need updating, please email us at tips@cleveland13news.com. As a community-driven news network, we appreciate the help of our readers in ensuring the integrity of our reporting.