Neenah Joint School District buildings will see a significant upgrade in safety and security through a grant provided by the Wisconsin Department of Justice School Safety Grant program on Thursday.
Neenah received all of the funding it requested, getting $267,079 for safety improvements. In total, 147 Wisconsin schools and districts were part of this round of grants awarded for a total of over $10 million. This was the third round of grant distributions this spring.
Grant funds may only be used in specific areas and the District’s application highlighted five areas of need. Grant dollars are divided into primary grants that focus on baseline improvements to schools and advanced grants that may be used on specific upgrades for schools already meeting the minimum thresholds.
Neenah will add shatter-resistant film to windows near the main entrance of all buildings as part of its primary grant. With the advanced grant, the District plans to improve public address systems at all schools through software added to a recently-installed voice-over IP phone system. Other uses of advanced grant dollars will be the addition of the Raptor ID system at all schools to provide background checks and keep a digital log on all visitors, the purchase of radios that may be used between buildings to improve District-wide communication and the addition of more security cameras, primarily at elementary buildings. Additional shatter-resistant film will also be added to eligible windows in other areas of the school. Work will begin on all of the projects as soon as possible.
“The grant will cover needs that had been previously addressed in our District and are significant items we had been considering,” said District Facilities/Engineer Adam Krieger, who was responsible for writing the proposal. “We are appreciative of the Department of Justice providing these grant dollars to enhance security in our buildings while saving on our budgets.”
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