Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - In a letter to parents Tuesday, the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo said armed security guards will be on site for the full school day at all 29 of their Catholic elementary schools this school year.
The announcement came two weeks after two students were killed and 21 others were injured in a shooting during a mass for Catholic school students near Minneapolis, Minn.
The security will be paid for by of the Foundation for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo for this school year, and funded by a "small" tuition increase across all schools starting next year and going forward.
"This is just the next step... where the Diocese is able to add an armed security officer," said Jeff Rinaldo, vice president of the Tarian Group, which has been hired to provide the security at Catholic schools. "Most schools in Western New York have either a full-time security officer or a part-time School Resource Officer. You definitely see a lot of this directed towards high schools, but more-and-more throughout Western New York, middle schools are starting to see the presence of armed security."
It's the next step in standardizing processes across Western New York Catholic Schools.
"The new superintendent has really done an amazing job of trying to get everyone on the same page," Rinaldo said. "Prior, each school was kind of its own entity. They all met state requirements, in terms of having a plan and lockdown drills, but there was to an extent a lack of continuity in that. Our goal is to come in, take a look at all 29 schools' plans, see which need some help, and then create one plan that every school can adhere to."
"This initiative is a reflection of our shared belief that the safety of our children is priceless and must be protected with the highest level of care," said Catholic schools superintendent Joleen Dimitroff in a statement. "We are deeply grateful to the Foundation for making this possible and for supporting our schools in providing a secure, faith-filled environment where our students can thrive."
In addition to the armed guards, a security consultant is also being hired to assist principals in shaping safety plans. The Catholic Education Department also plans to send out surveys to ask parents how they think the security measures are doing.
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