Pa. lawmakers eye stronger guidelines as school districts enhance security measures

Following the 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., Pennsylvania lawmakers approved a grant program with the goal of getting $300 million to state school districts for security upgrades.

Four years after the killing of 17 people, schools in Western Pennsylvania are continuing to make those upgrades, although some state lawmakers think more needs to be done.

In the Greensburg Salem School District, every building’s security is being upgraded with about $200,000 in state grant funding, according to Superintendent Kenneth Bissell.

“There are several technologies and communication systems we would like to install for better communication between emergency personnel, district staff and the community,” Bissell said.

Nothing will change for students entering the district’s buildings, but staff will have updated badges for entry.

“We’re able to monitor entries and exits, and control times for when badge keys are operational,” Bissell said.

In the New Kensington-Arnold School District, Assistant Superintendent Jon Banko said administrators are confident in the building’s security plan. And while they haven’t designated additional funding for upgrades, Banko said they are expecting a Pennsylvania Commission on Crime & Delinquency grant that has a security component to it.

Administrators declined to go into detail about their security plans, they said, in an effort to avoid compromising them.

In the Franklin Regional School District, Superintendent Gennaro Piraino said the district is continually making upgrades to its safety and security features, augmented by civilian security personnel and an armed school police force with three full-time and five part-time officers.

“All of them have extensive experience working as police officers,” Piraino said of the school police. “And they continually train in all aspects of policing, beyond what’s required by the state.”

Each of Franklin Regional’s buildings has only one public entrance point, with a visitor-management system that includes a criminal background check.

Visitors are screened in a similar way — they are required to provide an ID to scan — in the Hempfield Area School District, which hired three part-time police officers earlier this month, Superintendent Tammy Wolicki said.

“As in past school years, only visitors — typically parents and guardians — who have a legitimate reason to enter a school will be permitted,” Wolicki said.

The Norwin School District hired a second school police officer this month. Matthew Lisovich is a former Swissvale lieutenant and security officer at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital in Pittsburgh. He entered into a 190-day contract with the district and will replace a security guard, costing the district $10,000 more than last year.

Superintendent Jeff Taylor said staff members undergo active shooter training, but the district did not have plans to repeat an active-shooter drill conducted about three years ago at Hahntown Elementary school with the North Huntingdon Police Department’s emergency response team.

The Jeannette City School District is looking to overhaul its security system. A second armed security guard will be added to replace a school resource officer. The district previously had two security guards — one armed and one unarmed — in addition to the resource officer. The cost for both of those guards is $102,120.

School officials also are seeking requests for proposals to upgrade the district’s surveillance camera system inside and outside buildings. Those were last updated more than 10 years ago.

“It’s an antiquated system,” Superintendent Matthew Jones said.

That cost is estimated to be $250,000 to $300,000.

Access to experts

State Sen. Mike Regan, R-York County, one of the legislators who pushed for the school security grant program, said schools should consult security experts.

“That money should be spent in the most efficient and practical way with an eye from the experts on ‘this is how you should spend your money,’ ” Regan said at a state Senate hearing in June.

Regan and Sen. Jim Brewster, D-McKeesport, have pushed the General Assembly to require a baseline for school safety standards.

In 2019 Brewster sent a letter specifically encouraging the state’s School Safety and Security committee members to establish physical baselines, including items such as door locks and cameras; mental health baselines, including school counselors and psychologists; and environmental baselines, including air quality monitors as well as lead and mold abatement.

The latest School Code changes the requirement for active shooter training from every five years to each year.

“Everyone in the building should be trained on how to protect themselves in the event of an active shooter,” Brewster said. “This updated requirement in the school code is a necessary improvement to keep our schools safe.”

There have been 27 school shootings in the U.S. in 2022, according to Education Week, and there have been 119 such incidents since the nonprofit began tracking them in 2018.

Two occurred this year in Western Pennsylvania — one person was killed in a Jan. 19 shooting outside Oliver Citywide Academy in Pittsburgh, and one person was injured in an April 5 shooting at Erie High School.

Staff writers Jeff Himler, Joe Napsha, Brian Rittmeyer, Renatta Signorini and Megan Tomasic contributed to this story.