WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings announced the award of over $23 million in grants to 74 school districts in 26 states to help them enhance and fortify their emergency response and crisis management plans.

“Knowing how to respond in a crisis and the ability to do so quickly is critical to ensuring the safety of our schools and students,” Spellings said. “These grants will help school districts incorporate appropriate methods and procedures in their emergency response plans and will also help them better coordinate with the entire community.”

The Emergency Response and Crisis Management program provides funds to help local education agencies prevent or mitigate, prepare, respond and recover from crises. Funds can be used to train school personnel and students in crisis response; communicate emergency response and reunification procedures to parents and guardians; coordinate with local emergency responders, including fire and police; purchase equipment; and coordinate with groups and organizations responsible for recovery issues, such as health and mental health agencies. This year, school districts must also commit to developing a written plan designed to prepare for a possible infectious disease outbreak, such as influenza pandemic.

As part of the No Child Left Behind education reforms, local school districts must provide assurances that they have plans that outline how they are working to keep their schools safe and drug free.

The grants are housed within the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, which supports efforts to create safe schools, respond to crises, prevent drug and alcohol abuse, ensure the health and well being of students, and teach students good citizenship and character. The office also coordinates the Department’s efforts in these areas with other federal agencies.

A complete list of the 74 grant awards follows:

ALASKA

• Anchorage School District, $461,316.00

ARIZONA

• Mesa Public Schools, $871,517.00
• Scottsdale Unified School District, Phoenix, Ariz., $364,226.00
• Yayapai County Education Service Agency, Prescott, Ariz., $596,571.00
• Yuma Elementary School District No. One, $249,998.00

CALIFORNIA

• Capistrano Unified School District, San Juan Capistrano, Calif., $167,054.00
• Chula Vista Elementary School District, Chula Vista, Calif., $245,059.00
• Cutler-Orosi Joint Unified School District, Orosi, Calif., $104,625.00
• Fremont Unified School District, Fremont, Calif., $244,467.00
• Granada Hills Charter High School, Granada Hills, Calif., $231,982.00
• Inglewood Unified School District, Inglewood, Calif., $226,054.00
• Los Angeles County Office of Education, Downey, Calif., $462,693.00
• Orange County Department of Education, Costa Mesa, Calif., 499,996.00
• Paradise Unified School District, Paradise, Calif., $98,827.00
• Panama Buena Vista Union School District, Bakersfield, Calif., 250,000.00
• San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools, San Bernardino, Calif., $235,796.00
• San Dieguito Union High School District, Encinitas, Calif., $98,860.00
• San Joaquin County Office of Education, Stockton, Calif., $491,657.00
• Westminster School District, Westminster, Calif., $218,280.00

COLORADO

• Denver Public Schools, Denver, Colo., $497,370.00
• Jeffco Public Schools, Golden, Colo., $453,107.00

CONNECTICUT

• Sprague, Connecticut Board of Education, Baltic, Conn., $97,366.00

FLORIDA

• School Board of Miami-Dade County, Miami, Fla., $204,269.00

GEORGIA

• Atlanta Public Schools, Atlanta, Ga., $496,004.00

IDAHO

• Coeur d’Alene Tribal School, DeSmet, Idaho, $85,192.00
• Joint School District #2 – Meridian School District, Meridian, Idaho, $355,922.00

ILLINOIS

• Aurora West Unit School District 129, Aurora, Ill., $250,000.00
• Iroquois-Kankakee Regional Office of Education #32, Kankakee, Ill., $496,861.00
• Meridian Community Unit School District 223, Stillman Valley, Ill., $99,995.00
• Moline Unit School District No. 40, Moline, Ill., $183,785.00
• Regional Office of Education for Dupage County, Wheaton, Ill., $493,127.00
• Rockford Public School District #205, Rockford, Ill., $460,425.00

INDIANA

• Indianapolis Public Schools, $490,239.00

IOWA

• Davenport Community Schools, Davenport, Iowa, $247,223.00

KENTUCKY

• Carlisle County Board of Education, Bardwell, Ky., $481,601.00
• Green River Regional Educational Cooperative, Bowling Green, Ky., $599,823.00
• Letcher County Public Schools, Whitesburg, Ky., $102,803.00

LOUISIANA

• Jefferson Parish Public School System, Marrero, La., $430,849.00

MASSACHUSETTS

• Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District, Wilbraham, Mass., $326,279.00
• Lynn Public Schools, Lynn, Mass., $194,935
• Newton Public Schools, Newton, Mass., $330,625.00
• Weymouth Public Schools, Weymouth, Mass., $233,825.00

MICHIGAN

• Southgate Community Schools, Southgate, Mich., $230,296.00
• Waterford School District, Waterford, Mich., $218,199.00

MINNESOTA

• Stephen-Argyle Central Independent School District #2856, Stephen , Minn., $399,627.00
• St. Cloud Area School District 742, St. Cloud, Minn., $246,623.00

MISSOURI

• Board of Education of the City of St. Louis, St. Louis, Mo., $482,273.00
• Seneca R-7 School District, Seneca, Mo., $229,015.00

NEW JERSEY

• Middlesex County Vocational and Technical Schools, East Brunswick, N.J., $466,675.00

NEW YORK

• Clarkstown Central SchoolsNew City, N.Y., $95,974.00
• New York City Department of Education, New York, N.Y., $1,365,087.00

NORTH CAROLINA

• Buncombe County Public Schools, Asheville, N.C. $481,505.00

OHIO

• Columbus Public Schools, Columbus, Ohio, $474,475.00
• Garfield Heights City Schools, Garfield Heights, Ohio, $102,854.00

OKLAHOMA

• Beggs Public Schools, Beggs, Okla., $97,688.00
• El Reno Public Schools, El Reno, Okla., $99,411.00
• Oklahoma City Public Schools, Oklahoma City, Okla., $475,009.00

PENNSYLVANIA

• Hempfield School District, Landisville, Pa., $148,816.00
• Lake-Lehman School District, Lehman, Pa., $100,000.00
• School District of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pa., $714,607.00

SOUTH CAROLINA

• Beaufort County School District, Beaufort, S.C., $294,771.0.0
• Kershaw County School District, Camden, S.C., $211,460.00

TEXAS

• Alvarado Independent School District, Alvarado, Texas, $99,700.00
• Angleton Independent School District, Angleton, Texas, $139,675.00
• Aransas County Independent School District, Rockport, Texas, $99,812.00
• Burleson Independent School District, Burleson, Texas, $94,608.00
• Castleberry Independent School District, Fort Worth, Texas, $100,400.00
• Conroe Independent School District, Conroe, Texas, $310,435.00
• Education Service Center Region 18, Midland, Texas, $656,780.00
• Houston Independent School District, Houston, Texas, $495,524.00
• Karnes City Independent School District, Karnes City, Texas, $99,537.00

VIRGINIA

• Grayson County Public Schools, Independence, Va., $116,744.00
• Mecklenburg County Public Schools, Boydton, Va., $99,940.00
• Wise County Public Schools, Wise, Va., $94,909.00

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