ANNA REGER
Anika Jackson recently set down with innovator and entrpreneuer Anna Reger to discuss her new product FlipLok. Thank you Anna for sharing your story and allowing us to get to know you better and learn about your mission to make schools safer!
What inspired you to create FlipLok? As a mother of six children, I understand the challenges and joys of parenting. We all want our children to grow up in a safe and nurturing environment, where they can learn and thrive. However, life isn’t like the portrayals of the “family ideal” shown in old sitcoms such as The Brady Bunch or Leave It to Beaver. While love prevails in our household, we still need to embark on uncomfortable conversations, such as discussing stranger danger or the birds and bees, which are necessary for our children's safety and well-being. In today's world, there is a new topic that is scarier than anything my parents ever had to discuss with me - school safety. I vividly remember the day my youngest daughter came home from school and told me about the lockdown procedure they practiced in response to an active threat situation near her elementary school. It broke my heart to hear her say that she didn't know what to do if her teacher wasn't with her or how to know if the door was locked. My child was scared, and as a parent, I felt helpless too. Unfortunately, this fear and uncertainty are not unique to my family. Countless school administrators, teachers, and first responders also feel helpless in the face of this growing epidemic. Our children are expected to learn while under duress, and research from Stockholm University shows that stress can hinder their ability to retain information and learn effectively This lead to us designing and creating Fliplok. With Fliplok, we spent a lot of time developing the product and getting it patented before bringing it to market. There is a great deal of education we have had to
15
