Grant Details

The Pennsylvania Department of Education, Office for Safe Schools offers three grant programs to fund the following initiatives: 

• School Resource Officer (SRO) Program - Address school violence by establishing or enhancing school security, including costs associated with the training and compensation of school resource officers. The grant is designed to provide funds to enable the placement of SROs into schools across the Commonwealth. 
• School Police Officer (SPO) Program - Assist school entities in funding programs which address school violence by establishing or enhancing school security, including costs associated with the training and compensation of school police. The grant is designed to provide funds to enable the placement of school police officers into schools across the Commonwealth.
• Program Grant - assist school entities by providing funding for programs that address school violence. Allowable programs include:
  • Conflict resolution or dispute management, including restorative justice strategies;
  • School-wide positive behavior support that includes primary or universal, secondary and tertiary supports and interventions in school entities;
  • School-based diversion programs;
  • Peer helpers programs;
  • Risk assessment, safety-related, violence prevention curricula, including, but not limited to, dating violence curricula and restorative justice strategies;
  • Classroom management;
  • Student codes of conduct;
  • Training to undertake a school entity wide assessment of risk factors that increase the likelihood of problem behaviors among students;
  • Development and implementation of research-based violence prevention programs that address risk factors to reduce incidents of problem behaviors among students including, but not limited to, bullying;
  • Comprehensive, school entity wide school safety, violence prevention, emergency preparedness and all-hazards plans, including revisions or updates to such plans and conducting emergency preparedness drills and related activities with local emergency responders;
  • Provision of specialized staff and student training programs, including training for Student Assistance Program team members in elementary, middle and high schools in the referral of students at risk of violent behavior to appropriate community-based services, including mental health services;
  • Alternative education programs provided for in Article XIX-C of the School Code;
  • Counseling services for students enrolled in alternative education programs;
  • An Internet -based system for the management of student discipline, including misconduct and criminal offenses; and
  • Staff training programs in the use of positive behavior supports, de-escalation techniques and appropriate responses to student behavior that may require immediate intervention. 
  • The implementation of Article XIII-E of the School Code (related to threat assessment).
• Equipment Grant - The purpose of the Safe Schools Initiative Targeted Grant for Equipment is to assist school entities by providing funding for security planning, purchase of security-related technology and training in the use of security-related technology. Security planning and purchase of security-related technology shall be based on safety needs identified by the school entity's board of directors, such as the institution of student, staff, and visitor identification systems, including criminal background check software. Allowable equipment includes:
  • Metal detectors;
  • Protective lighting;
  • Surveillance equipment;
  • Special emergency communications equipment, including radios;
  • Electronic locksets, deadbolts, and theft control devices and training in the use of the security-related technology; and
  • Student, staff, and visitor swipe-card identification systems.