Oct. 23, 2024

More than $4.2 million was awarded through the Public School Facility Improvement Grant program to schools in Schuylkill County today, according to Reps. JoAnne Stehr (R-Northumberland/Schuylkill), Tim Twardzik (R-Schuylkill), Dane Watro (R-Luzerne/Schuylkill), and Jamie Barton (R-Berks/Schuylkill) and Sen. Dave Argall (R-29).

“The safety and well-being of our students are top priorities, and these grants will allow our schools to make much-needed improvements,” Stehr said. “This investment ensures that our children have a safe and secure environment where they can learn and thrive.”

Nine school districts in Schuylkill County received funding, including:

• Blue Mountain School District – $1,075,000 to replace windows, repair the roof, and make other safety upgrades to Blue Mountain High School.
• Mahanoy Area School District – $600,000 to improve the HVAC system at Mahanoy Area Elementary School.
• Pine Grove Area School District – $250,000 to improve the HVAC system at Pine Grove Area High School.
• Pottsville Area School District – $110,000 to increase the safety and security of John S. Clark Elementary Center, DHH Lengel Middle School, Pottsville Area High school, and Howard S. Fernsler Academic Center.
• Saint Clair Area School District – $110,000 to improve the HVAC system at Saint Clair Area Elementary/Middle School.
• Schuylkill County Area Vocational Technical School – $476,805 to replace three roofs and enable cellular coverage at the South Campus located in Norwegian Township.
• Schuylkill Haven Area School District – $350,000 to improve the HVAC system at Schuylkill Haven Area Middle School.
• Shenandoah Valley School District – $800,000 to improve the HVAC system and install energy-saving lighting at the Shenandoah Valley School District K-12 facility.
• Tamaqua Area School District – $450,000 to replace the roof at Tamaqua Area High School.

“As the chair of the Senate Education Committee, I understand how serious the need is for better school buildings,” said Argall. “Outdated school facilities can put student safety in jeopardy and this highly competitive funding is much needed.”

The Public School Facility Improvement Grant Program was created to provide grants to public school districts and area career and technical schools for eligible facility improvement projects. The Program was established Act 34 of 2023 (P.L. 251, No. 34).

The Local Share Accounts (LSA) were established by the Pennsylvania Race Horse Development and Gaming (Act 71 of 2004). The funds are generated by the state gaming funds and may be used to support projects in the public interest within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Representative JoAnne Stehr
107th Legislative District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives

Media Contact: Will Jones
717.260.6615
WJones@pahousegop.com
Repstehr.com | Facebook.com/RepStehr
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