HARRISBURG — Sen. Joe Scarnati, R-Brockway, is encouraging local middle and high school students to share their perspectives on improving school safety by participating in the second annual “Talk To Your State Senator” statewide video competition.

The contest, which is sponsored by the Senate of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania School Boards Association, is open to Pennsylvania students in grades 6 through 12, including all public school, private school and home school students. Participants are encouraged to submit online video entries of no longer than three minutes, which highlight ways to make schools safer.

A total of $10,000 in prizes will be awarded through the PA 529 college savings program, administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Treasury. Prizes will be deposited into a college savings account in the winner(s) name. Videos will be judged based on creativity, content and effectiveness of message delivery.

Scarnati explained that funding for school safety initiatives has been one of his top priorities.  The 2018-19 includes $60 million in new money for initiatives to protect schools and students from violence. The new funding is in addition to the $10 million dedicated to an existing grant program created in 2013 by a law authored by Scarnati.

“Every school has its own unique safety needs and challenges,” Scarnati said. “Legislators must continue to look at the perspectives of local officials and academic leaders, as well as students when determining how best to protect our schools. This contest invites students to share the kind of issues they see in the hallways and classrooms every day and the opportunity to offer solutions to help make our schools safer environments for learning.”

The contest will remain open through Dec. 7. Winners will be announced in May 2019. For more information on the contest or to submit a video, please visit:www.legis.state.pa.us/talk-to-your-state-senator/.