Charleroi officials to install state-of-the-art security doors at high, middle schools
Several new school security enhancements will soon be in place for the Charleroi Area School District.
At the Charleroi Area School District Board of Education meeting last week, Superintendent Dr. Ed Zelich said that 16 exterior security doors have been delivered and will be installed on Friday at the high school and middle school.
“We ordered the doors for places that we identified as weaknesses in district entry points,” said Zelich. “There are no handles on the outside of the doors, which prevent them from being barricaded. These state-of-the-art doors were developed after the Virginia Tech shootings.”
Zelich estimated that the security doors will cost the district approximately $50,000.
“The board wants to thank Dr. Zelich for everything he has done to improve the overall safety for our school district,” said Board President Kenneth Wiltz.
In addition, Zelich told the board that the Washington County Commissioners and the Charleroi Borough Council have donated a 2010 Ford Explorer police utility vehicle to the district. The district will now have two police vehicles on campus. Zelich added that he recently met with Charleroi Regional Police Chief Eric Porter to discuss roles and responsibilities for a new elementary school security officer.
Also, during the meeting, the council agreed to partner with the Mon Valley YMCA’s “Before and After School Care Program,” at no cost of the district. Zelich said this program is designed to provide support for families who face logistical challenges with their daily schedules.
“Let’s say you’re a working parent and you begin work at 8 a.m. You can drop your kids off at the elementary school before then and staff from the YMCA will come in and help students with homework until school starts. Then students will go to their homeroom. Services will also be available for students until 6:30 p.m.,” said Zelich, who added that parents will pay the YMCA directly for this service.
Zelich said that the “Before and After” program will target pre-K through the second grade for now.
In other business,
n Zelich announced that PaTTAN — a project of the Bureau of Special Education in Pennsylvania–awarded the Charleroi Middle School a “Path to Graduation” (P2G) grant in the amount of $23,000. This program identifies at-risk students who need help and provide services, so they can get back on the pathway to graduation.
n The board approved a partnership with Counseling & Wellness LLC for school-based mental health therapy services at the elementary school. This program identifies at-risk students and provides services to help meet their emotional needs.
n The board voted Barb Pepper as board treasurer and Heather Keranko as assistant board treasurer.