Dec. 25, 2020

District awarded $17,000 safety grant

Upper St. Clair School District was recently awarded a $17,307 equipment grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Office for Safe Schools. 

Through the grant, the district’s more than 70 exterior door locks will be replaced. Rather than distributing keys, building access for employees will be managed through the use of access cards/employee IDs. In addition, the grant will fund the installation of a card reader access control system at the Boyce Middle School field house.

In November 2019, officials from the Crime Prevention Center for Training and Services conducted an independent security assessment of all district facilities. Among the recommendations was the need for an improved system for exterior access control.

“The card reader access control system is in line with best practices,” Chief of School Police Sean Bryson said. “Access reader cards can be issued, their usage tracked, and terminated in a systematic low- cost manner after system installation.” 

The 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 grants of up to $40,000; and School Resource Officer grants of up to $60,000. According to PDE, targeted safety grants assist schools in:

• reducing unnecessary student disciplinary actions and promoting an environment of greater productivity, safety, and learning; and
• enhancing anti-violence efforts between schools and parents, local governments, law enforcement and community organizations.