Harrisburg High School-John Harris Campus
A plan to bring police officers into Harrisburg schools has been halted.
At a board meeting this week, the Harrisburg School District announced that it would hold off on a previous plan to establish a school police department, as it prepares to potentially exit state receivership.
“This is not a retreat from our commitment to safety,” Superintendent Dr. Benjamin Henry said. “Instead, it is a calculated decision to ensure we can responsibly fund such an initiative over a sustainable five-year period.”
In November, district receiver Dr. Lori Suski approved a safety plan that included hiring four police officers and creating a police station at the Harrisburg High School-John Harris campus, following a significant increase in violent incidents.
However, on Tuesday, district officials said that they would back down on that plan for now, as they need to be cautious with spending money, as the district could exit state receivership in the coming months.
Suski said that she is making the recommendation to exit receivership and is working on writing the petition to the state Department of Education. The district is “on a trajectory” to argue for exiting, she said. The receivership is set to expire on June 17.
“Part of the decision to move forward, it’s a fiscal decision,” Suski said. “And if the district is possibly looking at exiting receivership, or is desiring to exit receivership, we won’t know for sure until June. We will not be permitted to enter into any new initiatives for a period of five years.”
Suski said that, with that in mind, she doesn’t foresee policing coming up for discussion for at least five years.
Instead, Henry said that the district will continue to work with its safety monitors, the Harrisburg Police Bureau and with community members to improve safety in the schools.
“The safety and well-being of each of our students remains my top priority and we will continue to implement measures that ensure every child feels safe and secure in our schools,” he said.
For more information, visit the Harrisburg School District’s website.
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