Puyallup schools gets federal money for security upgrades. Voters must approve the rest
The U.S. Department of Justice recently awarded grants to multiple agencies across the nation under the STOP School Violence Act, and it includes one school district in Pierce County.
The Puyallup School District received $473,062 from the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services. Puyallup is the only recipient from Washington state. There were over 150 recipients.
The Department of Justice announced on Dec. 23 it distributed a total of about $126 million, according to the DOJ press release.
Agencies can use the grant to incorporate safety measures or improve security at schools, among other things.
“We are very excited to receive a grant … that will help fund safety in Puyallup schools,” school district spokesperson Sarah Gillispie wrote in an email. “Schools must be safe places to learn and teach, and although this amount is a fraction of what is needed to improve security measures districtwide, it definitely helps our efforts.”
The school district plans to use the grant to assist with the cost to build safety vestibules, Gillispie said. Safety vestibules are secured entrances that prevent visitors from going into hallways before checking in at the main office.
Ballou and Edgemont junior high schools as well as Brouillet, Hunt, Maplewood, Meeker, Shaw Road, Spinning, Woodland and Zeiger elementary schools will have the safety vestibules, Gillispie said.
The school district also plans to upgrade outdated video intercom systems at the 10 schools, Gillispie said. The screens are small, which makes it difficult to see visitors. The front-entry cameras will be upgraded to cameras with better quality, she said.
This is the first time the school district received this grant, but it is not enough to cover the costs of other security system improvements, Gillispie said. If voters approve the capital levy, all schools in the district will have the same level of security, she said.
The school district will have two levy proposals on the special election ballot on Feb. 8, 2022. The six-year capital levy pays for school infrastructure improvements and upgrades, totaling $125 million, The News Tribune reported.
“School should be a haven for growth and development, not a source of anxiety and fear — and by no means should it ever be the scene of a crime,” Amy L. Solomon, principal deputy assistant attorney general of the Office of Justice Programs, said in the press release.
The Students, Teachers and Officers Preventing School Violence Act (STOP School Violence Act) was passed in 2018 and authorizes the DOJ to give funding to states, local government, Indian Tribes, school districts and law enforcement agencies.
