New School Safety Grant Program Awards Funding to Local Schools

HARRISBURG – Local school safety efforts will receive a big boost thanks to a number of state grants that were announced today, according to Senator Camera Bartolotta (R-46).

The School Safety and Security Grant Program was created in June to provide grants to school districts, intermediate units, area vocational-technical schools, charter schools and private residential rehabilitative institutions for projects to improve school safety.

School districts that will receive funding through the program in the current round of funding include Aliquippa School District; Ambridge Area School District; Hopewell Area School District; South Side Area School District; Brownsville Area School District; Carmichaels Area School District; Central Greene School District; Jefferson-Morgan School District; Southeastern Greene School District; West Greene School District; Avella Area School District; Bentworth School District; Bethlehem-Center School District; Burgettstown Area School District; California Area School District; Canon-McMillan School District; Charleroi School District; Chartiers-Houston School District; Fort Cherry School District; McGuffey School District; Ringgold School District; Trinity Area School District; and Washington School District.

Grants can be used to hire school security officers, purchase security-related technology, complete safety and security assessments, implement violence prevention curricula, offer counseling services for students, and create other programs to protect students.

Each local school district that applied through the program was awarded a grant of $25,000.

“Nothing is more important than protecting our children. Addressing school safety has been one of my highest priorities, and I am thankful that we are delivering on the promise to make our schools a safer environment for young people to learn and grow,” said Bartolotta, who served on the Pennsylvania School Safety Task Force. “Every school district has its own unique security needs. This funding will allow each school district to address its most critical needs pertaining to the safety of students, teachers and school personnel.”

More information on school safety measures under consideration in the General Assembly is available online at https://www.pasenategop.com/school-safety/. 

CONTACT: Katrina Anderson (717) 787-1463

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