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School Safety and Security

For decades, the State College Area School District’s Safe School Plan has evolved by drawing on broad input that allows it to incorporate a comprehensive perspective. In 1986, plans began for a traumatic events procedure, which led to our first Board Policy on the issue three years later. Since then, the plan has continued to emphasize crisis response, but over time also encompassed development, prevention, intervention, and risk reduction initiatives.

Our strategic plans called for safe, secure and nurturing school environments. This safe school plan is based upon our history and the profound commitment contained in our strategic plans.

Review our School Safety and Security Presentation.

Act 55

School Safety and Security Training Requirements for School Employees (3 hours annually).

Two (2) hours of required training addressing any combination of one (1) or more of the following areas shall be completed each year, in person or virtually: Situational awareness.

  • Trauma-informed approaches
  • Behavioral health awareness
  • Suicide and bullying awareness
  • Substance use awareness

One (1) hour of training in the following areas shall be completed each year:

  • Emergency training drills, including fire, natural disaster, active shooter, hostage situation and bomb threat. This training must be conducted in person.
  • Identification or recognition of student behavior that may indicate a threat to the safety of the student, other students, employees, other individuals, facilities, or the community. This training may be conducted in person or virtually.

Annually, the District implements a Safety and Security Training Plan according to the Act 55 requirements. These trainings include but are not limited to the following topics: Trauma informed practices, bullying recognition and response, de-escalation strategies, threat of violence, self injury and cutting, suicide awareness and prevention, substance abuse, behavioral health awareness, mental health and online safety. 

Response Teams

The Traumatic Events/Rapid Response Teams consist of staff members who serve in the event of a traumatic event impacting a district site. These teams rehearse in advance and meet on an ongoing basis to maintain a readiness to respond when called upon.

Citizens' Advisory Committee

 The Citizens' Advisory Committee for School Health and Wellness provides an advisory service to the Board of School Directors and the administration through the superintendent. This CAC helps develop systems and programs for the psychological and physical well-being of all students, in addition to providing a process to integrate decision-making and collaboration to support healthy children and youth. The committee also focuses on scrutinizing facilities and practices and provides information regarding a broad array of security issues.

Safety Personnel

In more recent years, SCASD has begun to take measures to provide more physical safety and security in schools by expanding the following:

Emotional Safety

 Measures to provide more emotional safety for students and staff with the implementation of the following:

  • Training of a Restorative Practices approach to discipline with a focus on building communities and repairing harm.
  • Provided training to all staff on situational awareness, trauma-informed awareness, behavior health awareness and suicide awareness and have provided Question, Persuade, Respond (QPR) to all 8th graders and all high school students in their first mandatory health class.
  • All ninth-graders will begin to receive teen Youth Mental Health First Aide Training (tYMHFA) to help our students help each other with identification and response to mental health needs.  
  • Increased our mental health support by organizing a Mental Health Team.
    • SCASD has hired mental health clinicians to provide therapeutic support to students who have barriers to such resources and has developed contracts with outside providers to help facilitate mental health support in a timely manner.