The Partner Alliance for Safer Schools (PASS) has released the fifth edition of its Safety and Security Guidelines for K-12 Schools, which offers the most comprehensive information available on nationwide best practices specifically for securing school facilities, from subject matter experts across the education, public safety and industry sectors.

State Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman announced at River Springs Elementary School that the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) will purchase and distribute over $33 million worth of personal protective equipment (PPE) and supplies to all eighty one public school districts to support efforts to maintain and return to face to face instruction. 

Cadillac, Michigan Area Public Schools (CAPS) close to a half a million dollars to enhance training and physical security measures for school safety and security.

Previously, school districts dealt with securing their systems at both the district and school level. But now, teaching, learning and working are all happening at home simultaneously. It’s messy, far more complicated, and gives our cyber and IT teams significantly less control over networks and security than there was when traditional in-school learning was the norm. It’s especially crucial we keep our security measures tight, even if it feels like an uphill battle.

The Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) announced nearly $50 million in school safety funding through its School Violence Prevention Program (SVPP). SVPP provides up to 75% funding for school safety measures in and around primary and secondary schools and school grounds.

Over the weekend, Fairfax, Va. County Public Schools, the 10th largest school district in the country, was hit by Maze ransomware, resulting in an apparent leak of student and faculty data, just days after previous attacks on these two other school systems.

As businesses and schools seek to bring people back to brick and mortar establishments, it’s going to be important to make customers, students and teachers feel comfortable, in addition to simply following guidelines. Customers are going to have to feel that it’s worth going out, versus shopping on-line. For retailers, that comfort might in part be derived from visible occupancy monitoring efforts and automated voice-down messages when people aren’t wearing masks or keeping their distance.

The Indiana Secured School Board has approved more than $19 million in matching state grant funds. The $19.4 million in awards allows the Board to fully fund all eligible, top-priority projects identified by 418 schools in their applications to the Secured School Safety Grant program (SSSG). In addition, the Board fully funded all school threat assessment projects, as well as eligible projects geared toward implementing health and wellness support services for parents and students.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio and Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza announced a multi-pronged approach to addressing, monitoring, and reporting air quality and ventilation in every building by the first day of school.

During an emergency special meeting, members of the Detroit Federation of Teachers (DFT) voted to authorize a potential safety strike aimed at pressing the Detroit, Mich. Public Schools Community District to implement basic science-based safety protocols before schools reopen during the continuing coronavirus pandemic.