Corbett explains school safety project

Duncannon - School administrators, teachers, parents, law enforcement and community groups can now better coordinate efforts to ensure their schools are prepared for external and internal threats, thanks to the launching of a new statewide school safety CD.

Attorney General Tom Corbett explained that the Attorney General's Office followed a concept and model created by the Susquenita School District and its superintendent Dr. Dan Sheats, to create a CD that walks schools through the step-by-step process of designing a school safety plan.

"Tragedies like the ones at Columbine, the Amish School in Lancaster and at Virginia Tech  University have shaken the core of our society," Corbett said.  "We need to be proactive in using lessons learned from prior instances of school violence and emergencies to safeguard our schools and students.  And partnership is the best way to accomplish that goal.

The school safety plan gives each school district the ability to create an interactive and secure website with critical information about each school in the district that only can be accessed by first responders in the case of an emergency.

Information on the website includes: detailed floor plans of each school; interior and exterior photographs; a complete contact list of all teachers and administrators; and a crises management response plan for the district.

"Important information available on these websites will give police, fire, EMS and other community first responders a general working knowledge of the facilities prior to arriving on the scene of a crisis situation," Corbett said.  "It allows them to assess the area and determine how best to address the emergency."

Locally, Stroud Area Regional Police Department are announce the implementation of a School Resource Officer (SRO) Program within the Stroudsburg High School.  Delaware Valley plans to hire its own in-school police officers, starting this year with the high school.