Monroe County News

Four educational institutions within the 176th Legislative District have received School Safety and Mental Health Grants, according to Representative Jack Rader of Monroe County. The funding aims to enhance security systems and provide behavioral health programs in schools.

Rader emphasized the importance of school safety, stating, "Ensuring students are safe at school is one of our top priorities as lawmakers and something I strongly support." He noted that the state funding would assist in reducing violence threats through these upgrades and programs.

The grants were distributed as follows: Colonial Intermediate Unit 20 received $70,000; Monroe Career and Technical Institute was awarded $70,000; Pleasant Valley School District obtained $183,539; Pocono Mountain School District received $261,801.

These noncompetitive grants were sanctioned by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. In total, $100 million was allocated statewide across 500 school districts, 176 charter schools, 29 intermediate units, and 74 area career and technical schools. Additionally, nearly $20 million in competitive safety grants were given to 367 nonpublic schools. This initiative is part of a larger $120 million school safety grant program included in the bipartisan state budget for 2024-25 approved by the General Assembly.

Representative Jack Rader can be contacted for further information via Andy Briggs at 717-260-6474 or abriggs@pahousegop.com.