Rep. McNally Announces $665,148 in State Grants for School Safety

COLUMBUS- State Rep. Lauren McNally (D-Youngstown) today announced the awarding of $665,148 in state funds for school districts in Ohio’s 59th district as part of the K-12 School Safety Grant Program, administered by the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission in partnership with the Ohio School Safety Center.

“Our children deserve safe learning environments so they can focus on their education and future,” said Rep. McNally. “While there is a lot more we can do to make our communities safer, these funds will be a welcome relief to school officials who are closest to these kids when danger strikes. I’m glad we are doing something to support their safety efforts.”

The K-12 School Safety Grant Program, a program of the Ohio School Safety Center which works to assist local schools, colleges, universities, and law enforcement agencies to prevent, prepare for, and respond to threats and acts of violence, including self-harm, launched in 2021 with funding from the state operating budget and allocations from the American Rescue Plan Act. The program aims to help schools pay for physical security expenses including new security cameras, public address systems, automatic door locks, visitor badging systems and exterior lighting. This most recent funding allocation was for the fifth round of the program and went toward 624 schools around the state, bringing the total number of schools served to 2,789 and dollars allocated to more than $215 million.

School districts within Ohio’s 59th district received $665,148 in this fifth round:

• $165,148 for Springfield Local — $250,201 in total investment after five rounds.
• $500,000 for Salem – both in initial award and total investment after five rounds.