The Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD) received nearly a million dollars in grants from the state to advance school safety programs, Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel announced last Wednesday.
The state awarded over $1.9 million in grant money to 19 school districts, with Madison schools taking $993,033. A total of $100,000,000 has been made available from the state for school safety programs.
The district plans to use most of the money on updating interior door hardware, according to MMSD’s Director of Building Services Chad Wiese. The rest will be used for active shooter training for all district staff in partnership with Madison Police, as well as glass hardener for main windows on all school main entrances.
Wiese said MMSD does not expect more money from the state any time soon. The district has discussed plans to ensure that all classroom doors automatically lock from the inside. Wiese said they would also like to add 460 new surveillance cameras to their buildings.
As for President Trump’s proposed plans to arm teachers with weapons, Wiese said the district has not given it any thought.
“No one’s even discussing it,” he said.
