Survey Says Pennsylvania Schools Need to Tighten Security
HARRISBURG, Pa. – The majority of Pennsylvania schools are falling horribly short of state safety standards, according to a recent survey conducted by State Auditor General Jack Wagner.
Wagner’s office mailed questionnaires to 722 school districts, intermediate units, cyber, charter and vocational-technical schools. Almost one-third sent no response. Of those that did, 89 percent had safety plans, but most lacked effective communication or implementation.
More than half of the educational agencies – school districts, intermediate units and vo-tech schools – and more than a third of the cyber/charter schools have greater than one entrance in their buildings, making it difficult to control who gets inside. Forty-two percent of the educational agencies and twenty-five percent of the cyber/charter schools lack any school visitation policies. Twenty percent do not even have a system that allows police to handle school violence.
Wagner has refused to release individual school responses, insisting that the ultimate goal was to get an overview of the statewide situation. He plans to get more information from formal audits and send recommendations to the Legislature.
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