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Southampton schools receive state security grant; division to spend roughly $244,000 on building security upgrades
Summary
The division reported receiving state school security grant funds plus a small reallocation of unused prior grant money; upgrades will include fencing, lighting and window treatments and require a local match.
School division officials told the board Monday they were awarded state and other grants to fund security upgrades across nearly all campuses.
Mr. Bill Hatch, presenting the school security grant, said the state awarded the division funds this year for every building except the Freshstart program. The division reported a state award of about $195,069 and a required local match of roughly $48,767.25, for a combined total of $243,836.25. The presentation said this year—s work would focus on smaller upgrades such as security fencing, exterior lighting and protective window treatments rather than large capital projects.
Officials also reported the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services (VDCJS) grant that covers security officers at Riverdale and Nottoway, and said the state recently released $9,506.12 in previously unspent grant funds that will be used to complete elements of prior applications for two middle schools that were not funded in 2023.
Why it matters: The grants will fund targeted security improvements across the division—s campuses without requiring large capital outlays this fiscal year; they do, however, require a local match and will be implemented by division facilities staff.
Implementation notes
Board members were told the work will be incremental and leverage existing systems; funds will be used for fencing, lighting and other smaller security measures at most schools. The division did not present a detailed project-by-project list in the meeting packet; staff said they will use the awarded funds to pursue items included in the original grant applications.
Ending
The board expressed appreciation for the award and asked staff to provide follow-up details on the schedule and specific projects once procurement and planning are complete.
