During the upcoming year at Bradford Area School District, students and the community will see much tighter security that includes one secured entrance at each school building as well as armed guards at all four campuses.
That was the word from school board president Shane Oschman, who delivered his comments at the end of Wednesday’s meeting. Oschman said the security task force, which included himself, three other board members, Superintendent Katharine Pude and Bradford City Police Chief Chris Lucco, have worked the past several months to increase security measures in the school district.
“We’re very proud of the security procedures we already have in place in this district, but we always have room for continued improvement,” Oschman said. “We’ve already put cameras in (George G. Blaisdell) and School Street” elementary schools. In addition, alarms will be placed on every single entryway into the high school, he added.
“If a student or anyone else would try to open those doors, including some sort of intruder, the alarm will sound,” he continued. “We’ve put in place other procedures within the high school building, as well, to make sure certain areas are gated off for any activities going on in the school” after hours. Oschman said the high school will also have only one entry point from the Interstate Parkway side of the building.
“We’ll be adding a layer of security by adding a second door in which a person would have to be buzzed through,” he explained. “If they have an appointment or need to enter the school building, they’ll buzzed through an additional door and escorted throughout the school building.”
Oschman said this system at the high school is expected to be in place by October.
He noted Floyd C. Fretz Middle School also will have only one entryway to the school, as has been the procedure in the past.
While the new security measures can be a “little frustrating” for the public, Oschman said he believes this is what the public, board and most importantly, the students, want for a safer environment.
Oschman said the school district will also begin advertising for additional armed guards who will be stationed at each of the four buildings in the school district. Qualified individuals will have Act 120 training for police work, or can be retired from the Pennsylvania State Police system.
“We are hoping to hire four full-time equivalent armed guards who will help us make sure we will have somebody in all our buildings every single day we are in session with school,” Oschman remarked, noting two armed guards will work in conjunction with the current two school resource officers.
He said the extra measures provided at the buildings were included in the 2018-19 school district budget. Following the meeting, Oschman said the district will also use a portion of a Title IV state grant for the upgrades and will apply for additional state grants to help fund ongoing security measures at all the buildings.
“This is not the end, this is really the beginning, we want to look at other ways to continuously improve” security, he said. “Our intention is to involve students in that, as well as our administration, teachers — and quite frankly, everybody in every level of our school district.”
Another highlight of the evening was a presentation by students with the Envirothon Team which took seventh place in statewide competition this year. The team of students, lead by instructor Jan Russell, were Ethan Hollamby and Clare Mulcahy, who will be on next year’s team, and Tyler Thompson, Nicholas Hann and Austin Jadlowiec, who are 2018 graduates.
Pude said the team is relatively new from the high school and the students worked “very, very hard” in the competition that tested their problem-solving skills in aquatics, forestry, soils and land use and wildlife.
Jody Groshek of the McKean County Conservation Office also spoke and said the team’s seventh-place win is the highest McKean County students have ever placed in the state competition comprising 66 teams.
“(School districts in the county) have been going to this 29 years, so this is quite an accomplishment for the whole county,” Groshek said, before presenting Russell with a plaque. “I’m very impressed with what they achieved.”
Under business and financial affairs, the board approved a reduction of approximately $200,000 in the 2018-19 school district general fund budget of $41 million, which represents no tax increase and a tax rate of 22.12 mills, said Judith Bodamer, district director of finance. She said the decrease in the budget was the result of a reduction in expenditures and increased revenues.
In personnel matters, the board approved the hiring of Stephanie Martin as a school counselor at Fretz Middle School, as a salary of $47,678; Megan McIntire as a first-grade teacher at GGB at a salary of $41,128; David Eaton as a first-grade teacher at GGB at a salary of $41,128; and Matthew Shuey as a math teacher at Fretz Middle School at a salary of $41,128.
The board also approved the retirement of Michael Ware, custodian at Fretz Middle School after 11 years of service; and the resignation of Gabrielle Neuhof, middle school girls’ soccer coach, after two years of service.
News provided by Pude in her report included mention that the beginning of summer school and extended school year will start July 9 and end Aug. 2 at the elementary schools and middle school. She said the high school has already begun the summer school program which ends the second week of August.
