HARRISBURG, Pa. — The Pennsylvania House Education Committee discussed suicide prevention training, security funding and the role of law enforcement in schools at a Thursday hearing on school safety.
“It’s our responsibility working with our partners to make sure that our schools are areas of learning, of growth [and] of development for our students in a safe environment,” said Education Committee Chairman Peter Schweyer, D-Lehigh.
One such potential school safety partner is Sandy Hook Promise, a Connecticut-based nonprofit organization focused on protecting children from gun violence.
Sandy Hook Promise provides evidence-based violence prevention training materials.
Amy Bradley, state policy director at Sandy Hook Promise, testified Thursday in support of House Bill 2086, also known as the Safety and Violence Education Students Act, which was referred to the Education Committee in March.
Bradley's nonprofit was formed by victims' family members after the 2012 mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut.
SAVE Students Act
The proposed SAVE Students Act would require Pennsylvania schools to provide at least one hour of training in suicide awareness and prevention to students in sixth through 12th grades each year.
“Think of a future where every student has the tools and resources they need to recognize the observable warning signs, not just in themselves, but also in their friends."Amy Bradley
The bill calls for students and school staff to be trained in identifying the warning signs of depression, self-injury and suicide.
“Think of a future where every student has the tools and resources they need to recognize the observable warning signs, not just in themselves, but also in their friends,” Bradley said.
Additionally, the SAVE Students Act would require training in violence prevention and social inclusion to help students identify safety threats and connect with their peers, respectively. The proposed legislation also calls for the formation of student-led violence prevention clubs.
State Rep. Mike Schlossberg, D-Lehigh, is a co-sponsor of the bill.
Sandy Hook Promise has advocated for similar bills in other states, with legislation passing in Ohio and Louisiana.
School Culture and Reporting
Various school professionals also testified before the Education Committee about their safety work and the challenges they face.
Todd Repsher, coordinator of school safety and emergency management for Bethlehem Area School District, spoke about the importance of prioritizing students’ behavioral health and promoting positive school cultures.
He praised the approval of Act 55 in 2022 that required school employees to begin receiving three hours of school safety training every year. Previously, staff only received one hour of training every five years.
“Those are great strides with working with our staff,” Repsher said.
Bethlehem Area staff is trained in therapeutic behavior management and restorative practices, he added.
BASD also uses reporting systems to target support to students who need it, including Handle with Care and Safe2Say.
Handle with Care, a federal program used by some districts, allows Bethlehem Area to partner with local law enforcement so school staff is notified when a student has experienced something traumatic outside of school. This helps staff better understand the challenges a student is facing.
Safe2Say, a Pennsylvania program, is an anonymous reporting platform for students and school community members to use when someone may be a threat to themselves or others.
Repsher said BASD has had 1,313 tips since Safe2Say was implemented in 2019. Most tips are about a potential suicide or self-harming behavior, like cutting, he said.
Administrative fatigue
Jason Bottiglieri, superintendent of Northeastern School District in York County, critiqued Safe2Say in his testimony.
He said the system contributes to “administrative fatigue” as districts must investigate an influx of tips, many of which are unfounded. This directs administrators' attention away from educational duties, he said.
Bottiglieri, who spoke on behalf of the Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools, also denounced unfunded safety mandates from the state.
He pointed to Act 44 of 2018 that required each district to designate a school safety and security coordinator without providing funding for the position. These responsibilities fell to many superintendents, who already have full plates, he said.
Bottiglieri also raised concerns about decreasing state funding for mental health and security, as well as the reliance on grant funding that forces districts to compete for money.
In 2022-23, the state provided $95 million to mental health for schools and another $95 million for security, Bottiglieri testified. By 2024-25, the Legislature combined funding for mental health and security, providing just $100 million to be used for both efforts, he said.
“The three-year decline is raising significant concerns about the level of attention being given to the key issues of school safety and mental health,” Bottiglieri said.
Education Committee Minority Chairman Jesse Topper pushed back on Bottiglieri's testimony, noting the security and mental health funding was combined to “apply flexibility to the dollars that are out there so that you can use them for a variety of platforms.”
School resource officers
Topper, R-Bedford/Fulton, also said school resource officers are invaluable safety assets.
“There was a fear initially this would be someone that kids might fear in some sense,” he said. “I have not seen that. I have seen just the opposite.”
Kevin Mengel, a school resource officer in Spring Grove Area School District in York County, testified about his experience in the role.
Mengel said he has an open-door policy and comforts students when they have problems. He spends time in the cafeteria and at sporting events to make himself known as a mentor.
“You become that friendly face,” he said. “The uniform almost disappears.”
Repsher, a former deputy police chief in Bethlehem, was previously responsible for choosing SROs for schools, he said.
“Not every policeman has the requisite skills to be an SRO."Todd Repsher, coordinator of school safety and emergency management for Bethlehem Area School District
“Not every policeman has the requisite skills to be an SRO,” Repsher said. “Just like not every officer is going to be a SWAT cop or a traffic officer, some have a certain proclivity to fit into that role.”
In Bethlehem Area, SROs also serve as mentors and “become members of the school community,” Repsher added.
State Rep. Joe Ciresi, D-Montgomery, said he believes all school security personnel should have police backgrounds. He also said districts should have their own police forces.
Ciresi said the state isn’t providing enough money to school districts for safety while sitting on a $14 billion surplus.
As of this academic year, all Pennsylvania school districts must have one full-time security guard, but that isn't enough, Ciresi said.
“What are we doing? We’re not fixing anything,” he said. “It’s like putting a Band-Aid on a cut that’s the size of your arm.”
Chairmen Schweyer and Topper said improving school safety is an ongoing focus of the committee and will continue to be moving into the 2025 legislative session.
