Susquenita School District adds armed security officers
Dauphin County, Pennsylvania. July 15 2018
Susquenita School District is adding armed security officers to guard the schools this year, part of an overall security strategy included in the district’s budget that the board approved in June.
The move is in-line with options that many other districts in the region are considering to protect their schools from violence, Susquenita Superintendent Kent Smith said.
“We want to reduce the amount of time from when an incident starts and when someone can respond,” he said.
Adding a security officer to the district’s Penn Twp. campus is just one of several precautions — physical and technological — that Susquenita is taking for the 2018-19 school year. Districts around the region and country have been addressing security following deadly shootings at schools in the past several years.
At the June 12 meeting, the school board approved a contract with Information Network Associates (INA) to provide an armed security officer to be on campus during weekday school hours and a second officer for athletic events, musical and theatrical performances, and other special events as requested.
The guards’ pay rate will be $43 per hour, which works out to about $130,000 for the whole year, according to the district. That money was added to the budget this year.
“Their duties are pretty much standard for what an officer can do,” Smith said. “They can detain and investigate, but can’t arrest people.”
Other districts in central Pennsylvania already have school officers and many more administrators are considering the option to protect their schools, he said. Recent attempts at school violence elsewhere have been thwarted by the presence of armed officers, he said.
Susquenita’s board has also approved installation of surveillance cameras and will use a mobile app to give staff a panic button in the case of emergencies.
Last month, the board approved spending nearly $161,000 to upgrade windows with a safety and security film. The film, designed by manufacturer 3M, will be installed on all entrance glass and ground-level exterior windows. The film makes glass shatter-resistant, upping the difficulty for a potential intruder to break the glass and gain entry.
The contract was awarded to PA Window Tint Inc., which has offices in Bellefonte and York.
Smith said the board directed him to look into security options for the school’s windows and doors, including bullet-proof glass, but that option was cost-prohibitive.
“(The add-on film) is a good second option,” he said. “It looks costly, but what price do you put on your kids?”
Currently, the district has locked entrances at which visitors must be buzzed in by office staff.
Budget
The district’s general fund budget for the year is $33.4 million. The budget will require a small tax increase in Perry County of 0.003 mills over last year. The new tax rate is 12.973 mills, or a bill of $1,297.30 on a property assessed at $100,000.
The tax rate for Reed Twp., Dauphin County, will drop 0.866 mills to 22.526 mills for the coming school year.
Lunch prices will increase 5 cents to $2.25 for elementary, $2.50 for middle and high schools, and $3.50 for adults.
Staffing
The board approved six resignations: Christy H. Brunner, health and physical education teacher; Hannah L. Harner, elementary teacher; Waynette L. Kemble, high risk instructional aide; Mary T. Kitner, cafeteria worker; Ashton B. Kline, high risk instructional aide; Victoria E. Smith, career facilitator and transition coordinator.
Hired were Tori R. Bentsel, high school counselor, $47,834; Caitlin E. Clarke, a new position of elementary and middle school counselor, $47,234; McKayla B. Goodling, elementary teacher, $44,983; and Anthony R. Lowe, custodian, $21,320.
