Swampscott gets Federal grant money to shore up school community security

SWAMPSCOTT – Security will be enhanced in Swampscott’s school and parks, thanks to the help of a federal grant.”We welcome these grant funds which will be used to enhance security throughout the school community,” Police Chief Ronald Madigan said. ” Funded improvements will focus particularly on inadequately lit, isolated properties such as outlying athletic fields, which are susceptible to crimes of trespassing and underage drinking, graffiti and vandalism. It is our goal to provide a safer school environment through a combination of improved lighting and camera systems that will be monitored remotely by both the schools and the police department.”Madigan said one of the items the department is interested in using the grant funds to purchase is a Code Blue Interactive Safety Pedestal Device for some of the athletic fields. Madigan said the devices are used on many campuses. He said the device looks like a pole and could be equipped with flashing blue light, cameras and a button users could push to communicate directly with the police department.Superintendent Matthew Malone said the district takes pride in working as a team with the police department to create a safe and healthy learning environment.”We are thankful for any opportunity to enhance our safety and security systems,” Malone said. “This grant will allow us the opportunity to improve our lighting and monitoring systems in order to ensure that all students, faculty and staff are safe and secure at all times, both within our schools, and on our school grounds. Safety and security is our highest priority and we take our responsibility in ensuring this seriously.”U.S. Congressman John F. Tierney (D-Salem), who helped secure the grant for the town, said the department would receive the funds through a Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) grant that would allow for the enhancement of school safety by improving security in and around schools.”Keeping our children safe at school has presented an increasing challenge over the years,” Tierney said. “These funds come as very good news and will allow the respective departments to acquire the right tools to promote a secure educational environment.”Madigan explained the $64,000 grant is a matching grant.”We have to secure matching funds within two years and implement the program to receive these funds,” he said. “We’ve had some preliminary discussions with the superintendent regarding looking at capital improvement articles as a source of funding.”The COPS grant program is administered through the U.S. Justice Department. The grants will provide up to half of the total cost for equipment to help deter crime. The grants can also be used to cover half of the costs associated with security assessments and training.