Northern Tier News

Nine public school entities serving Bradford County students have received School Safety and Mental Health Grants, as announced by Representatives Tina Pickett and Clint Owlett. These grants aim to enhance security systems and provide behavioral health programs in local schools.

"Ensuring the safety of students, faculty, and staff is critical, and these state grants will help in that regard by upgrading security systems and providing behavioral health programs in our local schools," said Pickett. "I have always been a strong supporter of funding that goes toward making Pennsylvania’s schools safer."

Owlett added, "For our students to succeed in school, they must feel safe and supported. These grants are an important tool in helping achieve that goal, and I am pleased to see this funding coming to our area schools."

The awarded school entities include Athens Area School District with $138,237; BLaST Intermediate Unit 17 with $70,000; Canton Area School District with $115,730; Northeast Bradford School District with $112,760; Northern Tier Career Center with $70,000; Sayre Area School District with $117,241; Towanda Area School District with $128,238; Troy Area School District with $126,374; and Wyalusing Area School District with $123,445.

These noncompetitive grants were approved by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. The commission allocated a total of $100 million statewide to various educational institutions including 500 school districts.

Additionally, nearly $20 million in competitive safety grants were distributed among 367 nonpublic schools. This completes the $120 million school safety grants program package funded through the bipartisan 2024-25 state budget passed by the General Assembly.