ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) – A new school year brings excitement and sometimes a lot of stress.
The state of Missouri is seeking to ease some of the biggest fears by handing out $70 million for safety and security upgrades to schools.
But some districts got more than others—and some got nothing at all.
In the last two years, Missouri Governor Mike Parson set aside a total of $70 million for safety and security upgrades. School districts applied and were scored based on population size, the percentage of students on free or reduced lunch, and even the age of their school buildings.
“Our buildings are quite a bit older than most other districts, and so that was a factor,” said Northwest Superintendent Dr. Jennifer Hecktor.
At House Springs Elementary, new high-visibility cameras have been installed inside and out. Elementary schools in the Northwest School District in Jefferson County didn’t have them, and their entrances weren’t secure either. Now, thanks to state funding, Superintendent Dr. Jennifer Hecktor says students will be safer. “That ensures that we have a really good lockdown situation. So in case there’s a problem, we can control that issue,” Dr. Hecktor said.
Northwest’s $450,000 grant was the second-highest amount in the state, behind only the St. Joseph School District north of Kansas City.
In fact, around 95% of all public and private schools that applied received some funding.
St. Louis Public Schools used their $300,000 for anti-intrusion film at eight of their school buildings, including Central Visual and Performing Arts High School, the site of a deadly shooting in 2022. School sites, a spokesperson wrote, were chosen based on crime statistics in and around each school.
Hazelwood also used its $300,000 for security window film for all building entries, while Francis Howell spent its $300,000 on surveillance cameras and two-way radios.
The Affton School District, however, which received $200,000, wouldn’t disclose what they purchased with the money. “Due to the sensitive nature of these improvements, we are not disclosing specific details to maintain the integrity of our security protocols,” the district said.
Our investigation revealed that all but nine public school districts in the entire state received funds. Just two in our area—Ladue Schools and Rockwood—got absolutely nothing.
People in Rockwood were shocked to learn this, especially when other affluent private schools like Villa Duchesne, Priory, and Principia received funds.
“See, that’s not right. Those kids, they need that money for those kids and things, right? They shouldn’t take that away from the kids, because that’s who it hurts, is the children,” said one person in the Rockwood district.
We wanted to ask state officials about it. The state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education declined to do an interview. They also wouldn’t provide the districts’ applications, classifying them as confidential.
In a statement, they said, “The schools not selected typically share characteristics: relatively new buildings, a relatively low percentage of students from poverty, and relatively low scores on the needs assessment, indicating a high level of preparedness.”
“It’s a big priority for us to make sure these schools are safe,” said Missouri Governor Mike Parson.
At a recent press conference, we asked Governor Parson whether there could be more funding for those districts left out.
“Whether somebody gets one or not, at some point, you have to figure who gets them and who don’t and why they don’t get it,” he said.
At Parkway South High School, teachers practiced with new tourniquets inside Stop the Bleed kits provided in every classroom.
Of the nearly $300,000 allocated to them, the district left about $73,000 unspent. Still, teachers say every bit helps.
“Otherwise, we don’t know what to do. I mean, we just don’t. This isn’t part of my college education,” said band teacher Lisa Kinworthy.
For the sake of students and staff, the cost of school safety is priceless.
In the latest round of grant applications, Rockwood received a score of just 24 out of a possible 100. Again, how judges arrived at that score is not public. We reached out to Rockwood School District and its members. They all declined to comment.
But a spokesperson sent a statement saying, “We were surprised to have not received funding through either round.”
There was no process to appeal. The Ladue School District sent a statement that read: “The Ladue School District applied for Governor Parson’s School Safety Grant Program funding under two competitive cycles held by the state. Unfortunately, on both occasions, we were not granted any funds. The safety of our students and staff is our district’s number one priority; therefore, after the exclusion, we sent a follow-up letter to DESE asking for an explanation, but we have not heard back.”
You can find more about the grants, here: https://dese.mo.gov/financial-admin-services/school-governance/safety
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