Three York County School Districts are among recipients of the 2013-14 Safe Schools Targeted Grants, according to a news release from the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
There were 110 awards, up to $25,000 each, according to the department. The local recipients are:
- Dover Area School District – $24,995
- Eastern York School District - $25,000
- South Eastern School District - $22,284
Dave Depew, director of special education and safety at Dover, said the money there will be used in a few areas. It will used for new visitor identification systems, which scan a visitor’s driver’s license when they enter a school.
Additionally, the district has been working with Northern York County Regional Police to identify a few places at schools where they need more access, so students could easily be brought back in from outside if necessary. Additional card-swipe access points could be installed in various places, he said.
The grant will also provide training for administrative and secretarial staff, to be offered by police, Depew said.
It’s the fourth safety-related grant Dover has received in the past year, he said. Others paid for programs to build community at the elementary level, radios so schools can keep in touch with school buses, and a school resource officer.
“I’m all excited we’re having some success,” Depew said, adding that the district is starting to implement some things officials have wanted to do, but budget constraints have made them more difficult.
Eastern York Supt. Darla Pianowski said the grant there will be used for training for administrators on topics such as planning for parent-child reunification after a crisis, school safety planning and incident command. District employees will also receive online training courses in safety.
The grant will also help fund incident command emergency kits full of essential equipment and supplies, she said in an email. Communication equipment, such as handheld radios and equipment to expand radio coverage area, will also be purchased.
South Eastern will use its grant to purchase 30 additional cameras for school buses and for an ID system for each of the districts six schools, according to Supt. Rona Kaufmann. The system will have a badge printer and software to identify if a person has a history of child abuse, she said.
