Allentown, PA − January 15, 2025 − Senator Nick Miller has been appointed to the School Safety and Security Committee of the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD), highlighting his commitment to strengthening public safety and enhancing the well-being of Pennsylvania’s students, educators, and communities.
In recent years, Senator Miller has championed significant investments in school safety and law enforcement recruitment. In 2024, he announced that North Catasauqua Borough had received a $15,000 PCCD grant to support local law enforcement recruitment efforts. Additionally, over $3 million in funding was awarded to 13 organizations and communities across Lehigh and Northampton Counties to enhance school security, innovative safety programs, and community well-being initiatives.
The School Safety and Security Committee, established in 2018 under Act 44, marked a significant step forward in addressing school and community safety concerns. The committee’s mission is to develop policies, allocate grants, and oversee programs that reduce school violence and improve security measures across the Commonwealth.
“Joining the School Safety and Security Committee is a meaningful opportunity to further support our schools and communities,” said Senator Miller. “I’m eager to collaborate with my colleagues to advance resources that protect students and staff while fostering secure learning environments throughout Pennsylvania.”
In his first meeting as a voting member, the School Safety and Security Committee approved the FY 24-25 Building Opportunity Through Out-of-School Time (BOOST) Grants and the FY 24-25 Violence Intervention & Prevention (VIP) Grants. The FY 24-25 budget allocated $56.5 million for these programs, including $11.5 million for BOOST grants and $45 million for VIP grants. A total of 44 local projects and two statewide projects were selected for funding, covering approximately 47 of the Commonwealth’s 67 counties.
A total of $1,297,074 in grants was approved for projects in Senator Miller’s district:
- BOOST:
- Fine Feather Foundation – $97,074 to expand the Excelsior After School Program to two additional schools: Harrison-Morton Middle School and South Mountain Middle School.
- Casa Guadalupe Center – $250,000 to enhance out-of-school-time education programs, increasing the number of youth served, employing more STEAM educators, and offering additional mental health support.
- VIP:
- Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) Trauma Centers – $950,000 to sustain the Cure Violence partnership, serving five counties (Carbon, Lehigh, Luzerne, Schuylkill, and Northampton), including communities in Allentown. Cure Violence is an evidence-based public health model that treats violence as a learned and preventable behavior and can lead to reductions in retaliatory violence.
For more information about the School Safety and Security Committee and its initiatives, visit the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency website at www.pccd.pa.gov.
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