Florida is the first state in the country to install drones on school campuses, and a Volusia County high school is leading the way.About 40 drones are being installed at Deltona High School as part of a pilot program aimed at s topping or taking down a school shooter.WATCH: Florida begins deploying drones at schools to stop mass shootings Florida begins deploying drones at schools to stop mass shootingsThe technology is provided by Campus Guardian Angel, an Austin, Texas-based company whose founders came up with the idea to stop mass school shootings. The idea behind this high-flying, first-of-its-kind pilot program is to use the drones to locate a potential shooter on campus within 15 seconds. While waiting for first responders to arrive, professional drone pilots navigating the devices would engage and distract a potential shooter using what the company describes as non-lethal distractors flashing lights, loud sirens, and pellet bangs.Taylor Worthington, with Campus Guardian Angel, said the drones positioned on the campus of Deltona High School were designed with specific vulnerabilities in mind."On this campus, we have 40 drones distributed throughout a few buildings here."Worthington said the pilot program was not intended to cover every corner of the school."The goal of our initial pilot deployment, was to not protect the entire school, but to be able to pick a few strategic locations where the administration, the sheriff's office, and ourselves think are most vulnerable and able to be implemented during this pilot phase of our program."On the 72-acre campus of about 1,800 students, that means 13 mounted boxes have been installed in high-volume locations including the student auditorium, cafeteria, gym, and several classrooms. Each box is equipped with 3 drones that can be launched within seconds. The devices are piloted remotely by professional drone pilots who are stationed more than 1,000 miles away in Austin, TX.It gives another set of eyes and ears.Christian Van Sloan is the chief pilot and a champion drone racer. Most of the pilots on the team are drone racing champions or competitors."We're not hiring the good pilots or the great pilots, we're hiring the best pilots," Van Sloan said.The drones are built to stay in the air even under attack."If you're shooting at the drone, we love that, if you're trying to hit it with a broomstick great," Campus Guardian Angel co-founder Bill King explained to us in November when we traveled to the companys Austin headquarters. For Deltona High School, which is already equipped with gates, guardians, and a full-time school resource officer, the drones represent one more layer of protection.As principal, Im really excited about having this enhanced security on our campus, said Dr. Christina Lapnow.Deputy Trevor Autrey, the school's only resource officer, said the system could help fill gaps he simply would not be able to cover alone."It gives another eyes and ears of the campus that I can't see all the time," Autrey said.Drones draw state money and mixed reactions from Parkland familiesJust over half a million dollars in state funding is being used to test drones at three Florida schools Deltona High School in Volusia County, Amos Godby High School in Leon County, and Boyd Anderson High School in Broward County. All drones are expected to be installed in these three Florida schools over the next several months, with the pilot program officially beginning Aug. 1.On Feb. 14, 2018, 14 students and three staff members were killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland when a former student opened fire.  The school shooting remains one of the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history.Some Parkland families we spoke with are cautiously optimistic about this new technology."It's not that it's implausible, but it's different. So, it's hard to just jump on the bandwagon until you see it in action," Debbie Hixon told us back in December.  Debbies husband, Chris, was the schools athletic director at the time and one of the victims.  Tony Montaltos daughter, Gina, was one of the first victims shot and killed in during the shooting.  He also has mixed feelings about bringing drones into the school security mix. These drones aren't patrolling; they just pop up when needed. So that's part of the problem.  We need to focus on the prevention piece rather than the reaction piece, he told us.Leaders with Campus Guardian Angel say the drone is not meant to replace security measures already implemented on campus, but to add another layer of protection.When asked how they plan to measure the success of the drones, especially when the likelihood they would be deployed is low, Worthington responded, "For the people who call this place home every single day, what is their feeling of safety before and after this system is installed? Just by having this system on campus, is it a deterrent enough for somebody who would wish to do harm choose to do something else that day?" ...read more read less