Amiya Hitchcock of Central Dauphin East High School shakes the hand of Sen. Mike Regan, R-Cumberland County, after being introduced. The Big 33 Football Classic team and cheerleaders are recognized at the state Capitol Rotunda. March 8, 2023. Dan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.com
At the end of 2012, before I was even sworn into the House of Representatives, I happily welcomed a group of fourth graders from Northern York School District to my new office during a tour of the Capitol. They laughed, they asked questions, and they were excited to be in the Capitol. I gave them each a fist-bump as they boarded their bus to return to school.
And we are learning from these events that attackers, like the one in Nashville, Tenn., in March of this year, are targeting schools with lax security standards. Based on data from the PA Department of Education, only approximately one-half of Pennsylvania’s 500 school districts have hired any form of school security personnel, even though funding for schools to do so has been made available since 1999.
Current law requires armed school personnel to successfully complete rigorous requirements, including Act 235 lethal weapons training, as well as training through the National Association of School Resource Officers . Also, most of the individuals being vetted for these security positions are either current or former police officers.