Plum Borough School District continues to have conversations about their number one priority, safety. This month, Officer Craig Harnish, is speaking to multiple kindergarten classrooms to help students understand the importance of safety for themselves and their fellow classmates. With the use of an age-appropriate activity book, Harnish reads with the students pinpointing key subject points like identifying who police officers are, how to identify an officer, why they are important to the community along with key personal facts like student name, address, and phone numbers, to name a few. He also conducts interactive activities that allow students to earn their own Plum School Police Junior Officer badge after promising to stay safe.

The great thing about these conversations is information is shared with students and parents. Families are able to see what their student(s) are learning in the classroom. It opens the door for parent/student dialogue and the reinforcement of what was taught.

Officers will continue to interact with multiple grade levels to share multiple safety topics. For example, first graders will learn stranger danger lessons. Second grade students will talk about staying safe as it pertains to biking, fires, playing safe, and home dangers. Third graders will focus on anti-bullying and learn from trainings from the National Bullying and Prevention Center. Fourth graders will talk about online surfing precautions and fifth and sixth grade students will look at safety measures for talking online, cyberbullying, and anti-vaping.

Junior high students will address drug and alcohol awareness, juvenile laws, the judicial system and how it works plus situational awareness (being aware of what and who is around you). Both grade levels will be a part of diversity training, Embracing Differences.

All high school students will be trained on “Stop the Bleed” in their health classes. They will have the opportunity to earn a national certificate endorsed by the Committee on Trauma. The Plum Schools Safety and Security Department are working hard to get all students trained and certified in “Stop the Bleed” by the time they graduate. Curriculum for sophomores and juniors are still under review.

Senior students will be receiving the "18 and the Law" presentation by Officer Michael Netzlof also. This is a program developed by The Allegheny County Bar Association and focuses on a number of laws for students turning 18, a “legal adult”. Laws pertaining to purchase agreements/leasing contracts, alcohol consumption and controlled substances, credit cards, sexual harassment, and the Selective Service Administration (if applicable) will be discussed.

According to Supervisor of School Police, Officer Tim Hanna, “Our goal is to take every step possible to assure the safety and security of all students and staff in the Plum Borough School District. I will also strive to make this department the model for school policing.”

Visiting classrooms is nothing new to the school police. They frequently talk to students in the classroom and are highly visible in the District buildings. This builds trust and establishes a trustworthy line of communication between students and police. They hope is for this to continue as the matriculate through the educational system and beyond school walls.