JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Governor Mike Parson announced a total of 566 school districts, charter schools, and nonpublic schools have received grant funds from the second round of funding for the School Safety Grant Program.

Governor Parson approved an additional $50 million to expand the School Safety Reimbursement Grant Program in the Fiscal Year 2024 budget. The grant program aims to support school safety improvements, including physical security upgrades and associated technology (e.g., door locks, monitoring systems), bleeding control kits, epinephrine auto-injectors, and automatic external defibrillators.

“What we were looking at with all of the things in the Safety Grant was kind of sum of those bigger ticket items that were kind of maybe just kind of piecing together a little bit, especially like intercom systems and fencing,” said Zac Rantz with Nixa Schools. “We’re thankful that we’re able to take care of a lot of these through this grant funding. We’re always out there looking for alternative sources of funding to take care of these projects. And this has allowed us to do that.”

“Our district’s mission is to provide a safe educational environment so our students have a successful future. And part of that is to make sure that our students feel safe in the building,” said Scott Umbarger, Director of Safety with Republic Schools.

The second round of funding was also available to nonpublic schools. An additional 169 school districts and charter schools received $20 million in funding during the first round of grants from the Fiscal Year 2023 budget.

“Improving the safety and security of our schools is an issue we can all support, and these grants help ensure our schools remain safe environments for Missouri children to learn,” Governor Parson said. “While threats of violence are something we never want to see in our classrooms, we must be prepared and have proper resources and response plans in place. This second round of school safety grants continues our commitment to doing just that and helping keep kids safe.”

For a list of the grant recipients, visit the website located here.