Schools get grants to improve security

Four area schools have received school security grants from the Michigan State Police.

Algonac, Port Huron, Cardinal Mooney Catholic High School and Landmark Academy will be making improvements with money from the Competitive School Safety Grant Program. 

Algonac High School received $127,530 from the program to be used to secure entry and exit points of school buildings. This involves changing door locks from conventional key access to electronic key fob or punch code systems. 

Algonac Superintendent Al Latoz said the school applied for the maximum amount of $250,000, and received more than he expected. 

"Did it as kind of a wish list thing," Latoz said. 

In the grant application, the district highlighted the age of the current system and the district's desire to replace it. The past few years have been difficult financially for the district, and grants like this will let it make the upgrades sooner, Latoz said. 

"Obviously anything helps," Latoz said. "We want to be safe over here."

Port Huron Area School District received $367,675 from a different part of the program and will have to pay a 25 percent match. The match money will come out of bond funds.

The funds will be used to increase security around the exterior of school buildings. This includes adding additional electric access locking doors, physical bollards around common areas and upgrading locks and doors throughout the district's buildings, said Theo Kerhoulas, the district's executive director of operations and innovation. 

Kerhoulas said the district worked with school resource officers, the St. Clair County Office of Homeland Security, teachers and building administration when developing the application. 

"Our school buildings were designed for a different time when security was not emphasized," Kerhoulas wrote in an email. "We can always do more, but this grant, the addition of SROs and our 2016 Bond work has dramatically increased the safety of our schools."  

Landmark Academy received $24,860 to be used to install a secure access system to office and technology areas. The school will also install security window film to outside glass surfaces. 

"We are excited that we will receive some of the funds that we applied for and will be able to move forward with enhancing the security measures on our campus," superintendent Debby Wilton said in an email. 

Cardinal Mooney Catholic High School received $15,650 from the grant program. The money will go to securing entry and exit points in the school. Call stations will allow staff to see video feed of people trying to enter the building and a new scan badge system will be used for staff and visitors to access different parts of the building. 

"The blessing of the MSP School Safety grant will allow us to further our commitment to campus security and safety," Cardinal Mooney Catholic High School principal Jason Petrella said. "Meeting these basic, but necessary needs will allow our students to focus on being their best under the influence of Christ.”

The upgrades are set to be installed by the start of 2019. The district is also looking to add additional security cameras in the future. 

The Competitive School Safety Grant Program awarded $25 million in the 2018 round of grants, split among 114 public school districts, 42 non-public schools, 22 public charter schools and 10 intermediate school districts. The program received $69 million in requests and 407 applications. 

Contact education reporter Jeremy Ervin at (810) 989-6276 or jervin@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @ErvinJeremy.