Although the state budget is slim in funding allocations, the approved one-year budget would give districts millions in funds for facilities upgrades and mental health counselors.
Deadlines for the school security improvement funding are fast approaching, with districts needing to submit materials by mid to late April.
Ransomware attacks tend to spike in spring and summer months, creating a “near-perfect storm” for hackers to disrupt patient care.
Education officials say they are confused by competing guidance coming from the CDC and The White House, some of which states that temporary school closures will do little to contain the spread of COVID-19.
While schools want to take action to keep students and staff safe from contracting COVID-19, public health officials say there is very little evidence that the virus is spread through contaminated surfaces.
Gov. Tom Wolf has proposed cutting available school security grant funding from $60 million to $15 million, a move that has earned criticism from Republicans.
The university publicly disclosed that it was considering adding facial recognition software to its security operations, but backed away from the proposal after students and faculty voiced their opposition.
The University of Oklahoma has a history of evolving alongside technology.
When I was a kid I would often head to the schoolyard after class for a pickup game of baseball or soccer.
The budget request hopes to make Jewish educational institutions safer in the wake of an increase in anti-Semitic attacks.