Safe Schools

Policy Committee    February 16, 2022 | 4:40 PM

On the week of the fourth anniversary of the school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, parents of students lost during that tragedy joined lawmakers for a joint hearing with the PA House and Senate Democratic Policy Committees to explore how to prevent similar tragedies from happening in Pennsylvania.  

The hearing took place at noon in room G-50 of the Speaker K. Leroy Irvis Office Building in Harrisburg and was followed by a news conference in the Rotunda of the state Capitol. Testifiers included parents of Parkland school shooting victims, PA public school officials and representatives from the PA Office of the Attorney General. 

Host + Testifiers

  • Hosted by: Rep. Ryan Bizzarro, Chair of the Policy Committee, Rep. Joe Ciresi, and Sen. Jim Brewster
  • Testifiers:
    • Max Schachter, Founder and Executive Director, Safe Schools for Alex 
    • Tony Montalto, President, Stand with Parkland – The National Association of Families for Safe Schools 
    • Dr. Sherri Smith, Deputy Secretary of Elementary & Secondary Education Pennsylvania Department of Education     
    • Dr. Scott Kuren, Director, Pennsylvania Department of Education Office of Safe Schools 
    • Dr. Dana Milakovic, Mental Health and AOD Specialist, Pennsylvania Department of Education Office of Safe Schools 
    • Mike Vereb, Director of Government Affairs, Office of the Attorney General  
    • Brittney Kline, Director, Safe2Say Something Program, Office of the Attorney General 
    • David Boyer, MS, Chief of School Police and Coordinator of Safety, Security and Management, Spring-Ford Area School District 
    • Jonathan Kassa, Director, North Penn School District Board Chair, Facilities and Operations & Safe Schools Committees

Agenda + Testimony

Media Release + News Coverage

Video + Photos