Grant Funds Security Upgrades at Chicago School
ASIS International and the ASIS Foundation selected DeWitt Clinton Elementary School to receive funding to make security improvements to its campus.
The school received $20,000 through the School Security Grant Competition, which is part of the Security Cares program and is designed to fund the purchase and installation of security equipment improvements to a school building or campus.
“Our school serves a resilient population—more than 50 percent of whom are immigrants and refugees,” said Maureen Delgado, DeWitt’s principal, in a statement. “Providing a safe school and learning environment is of paramount importance to us. This grant will allow us to upgrade the school’s security camera system, to add another level of security for our school community.”
DeWitt is a neighborhood school that is home to more than 1,200 Pre-K through eighth grade students in the West Ridge and Rogers Park communities of Chicago. It has a Level +1 rating, the best rating for a Chicago public school.
“Our teaching staff of 65 teachers and support staff of 26 work hard to implement a rigorous academic program, and also believe strongly in supporting our students’ social and emotional needs,” according to a message by Delgado. “We know that enrichment opportunities in athletics, visual arts, technology, library, and music are equally important in fostering student growth and development.”
DeWitt Elementary will be recognized on Thursday in the General Session at 8:30 a.m.
ASIS began this competition in 2003 as a means of giving back to the community hosting its annual event. As a central part of today’s Security Cares program, the grant’s goal is to encourage local schools to assess the security issues that confront their buildings, staff, and students each day.
In-kind donations are often sourced from the local chapter to supplement the grant. More than $320,000 has been given back to local communities since the launch of this important initiative.
In addition to the grant award, there are also several educational sessions at GSX that touch on school security and are part of the Security Cares program.
On Monday, “Stoneman Douglas High School: Lessons Learned” (4204) will look at how school staff and law enforcement responded to the deadliest school shooting in U.S. history.
On Tuesday, “The Illinois School and Campus Safety Program—A Winning Model” (5103) will be put on by the Illinois Terrorism Task Force. It’s been providing courses free of charge to K-12 schools, colleges, and universities throughout the state to enhance school and campus safety.
And on Wednesday, “The Gap Between School Violence and Security Solutions: What’s Missing?” (6301) will examine the widening gap between school-based adversity and the solutions being deployed to address it.
