School Security Personnel Training

Sections 1305-C (related to training), 1313-C (relating to school resource officers) and 1314-C (relating to school security guards) within Article XIII-C (relating to school security) of the Public School Code of 1949 were amended on July 2, 2019 (P.L.406, No.67) to require that all school police officers, school resource officers, and school security guards successfully complete the Basic School Resource Officer Course offered by the National Association of School Resource Officers (NASRO) or an equivalent course of instruction approved by the commission.  School security personnel intending to work in a school setting are required to receive this instruction either prior to employment, or, for current employees, within a certain time frame allowed by law.

A workgroup was formed to assist in the determination of what constitutes an 'equivalent training'. Representatives from schools and school security personnel, local law enforcement, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Pennsylvania Department of Education, and the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) developed a set of  criteria to be used when determining a program that is equivalent and beneficial for school security personnel.  These criteria or standards were presented to the School Safety and Security Committee (SSSC) for review at its November 20, 2019 meeting.

On December 11, 2019, the set of standards were presented to the Commission for acceptance and approval to be used by PCCD staff to evaluate and approve vendors offering equivalent course of instruction to the NASRO Basic School Resource Officer Course.

The set of standards are provided in the link below.  Please call Shaun White at (717)265-8718 for more information.

School Security Personnel Training Standards

School Security Training Providers