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Cove Schools Using Grants To Improve Security

Two Cove school districts will be using grant money from the Commonwealth to improve school security.

Claysburg-Kimmel will use a $25,000 grant to install a keyless entry system for the elementary school.

Spring Cove will use one grant of $25,000 for the purchase of school safety and security equipment for district facilities, including electronic locking systems, indoor and outdoor surveillance cameras, emergency and safety lighting, panic buttons, and emergency radios. In addition, Spring Cove received a two-year grant to offset the cost of compensating its school police chief.

The grants are part of an $8 million competitive Safe Schools targeted grant program. Grants were awarded to 303 districts, called local education agencies (LEA), by the state. The intent is to increase school safety by purchasing equipment, enacting new programs, and hiring security personnel and school resource officers.

Spring Cove’s grant for a police officer is $40,000 this year and an additional $20,000 in 2022-23, according to Betsy A. Baker, superintendent of the Spring Cove School District.

“Chief Richard Brozenich is a former Pennsylvania State Police [trooper] who has served as our school police chief since January of 2017,” Dr. Baker said. “We are very fortunate to have him on our staff to heighten school safety and are pleased that we have been awarded funds to help support his position.”

Darren McLaurin, superintendent of the Claysburg-Kimmel School District, said that his district’s grant will be put toward the costs of a keyless entry system for the elementary school.

“Currently, teachers have to use keys to move through locked doors, and there are a lot of doors, McLaurin said.

He said that the keyless entry system will use fobs, which will make it easier for teachers to move around the building. Also, fobs offer better security because they can be activated and then de-activated for visitors and substitute teachers.

The system also allows the district to track movement, such as when someone enters and then leaves a room.

He said that cost will be about $1,250 per door, for an estimated total of $37,000.

The district’s high school keyless entry system has already been installed, he said. The next step for the district will be to install a keyless entry system for office and other non-classroom doors.

McLaurin said that the district hopes to have the new system installed at the elementary school before the start of the 2022-23 school year.

Under the statewide grant program, the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s (PDE) Office for Safe Schools offers four types of targeted safety grants: equipment grants of up to $25,000; program grants of up to $20,000; School Police Officer (SPO) grants of up to $40,000; and School Resource Officer (SRO) grants of up to $60,000.

Both Spring Cove and Claysburg-Kimmel received equipment grants and Spring Cove also received a school officer grant.

According to the governor’s office, the grants are intended to help school districts “reduce unnecessary student disciplinary actions and promoting an environment of greater productivity, safety, and learning; and enhance anti-violence efforts between schools and parents, local governments, law enforcement and community organizations.”

 

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