Pennsylvania school safety

School mapping requirements & grants in Pennsylvania

Yes. By September 30 each year, 22 Pa. Code section 10.24(g) requires every school to have building floor plans, a campus aerial map, command-post locations, and utility shut-offs assembled and ready for immediate deployment to the incident command post for police and fire.

Pennsylvania regulation 22 Pa. Code § 10.24(g) requires every school entity, by September 30 each year, to assemble building floor plans/blueprints, a campus aerial/map, command-post locations and related emergency data and have it ready for immediate deployment to the Incident Command Post to assist local police and fire. It mandates the data and document types but not a specific digital mapping format or interoperability standard.[1]

Why this matters in Pennsylvania

Why do Pennsylvania schools need responder-ready maps now?

Every September 30, Pennsylvania schools must reassemble floor plans, an aerial map, and utility shut-offs into a binder ready for the incident command post, and a paper packet is stale the moment a wall moves. One live 3D twin makes that annual scramble disappear: always current, instantly deployable to police and fire, and fundable through PCCD's School Safety grants for public and nonpublic schools alike.

The mandate

What does Pennsylvania law require?

Law
School Safety regulations under the Pennsylvania School Code (Emergency and nonemergency response and preparedness)[1]
Statute
22 Pa. Code § 10.24(g)[1]
Compliance
Recurring annual deadline: September 30 of each year (information must be assembled and ready for immediate deployment by that date).[1]

What schools must provide: By September 30 of each year, every school entity must assemble and make ready for immediate deployment to the Incident Command Post (the physical location established under its emergency plan per 35 Pa.C.S. § 7701(g)) a defined information package to assist local police and fire in an emergency. The package must include: (1) blueprints or floor plans of the school buildings; (2) an aerial photo, map or layout of the school campus, adjacent properties and surrounding streets/roads; (3) locations of predetermined or prospective command posts; (4) current teacher/employee roster; (5) current student roster; (6) most recent yearbook; (7) fire-alarm shutoff location/procedures; (8) sprinkler-system shutoff location/procedures; (9) gas/utility line layouts and shutoff valve locations; (10) cable/satellite shutoff location/procedures; and (11) any other pertinent information. The regulation prescribes the document types and recipients (local police and fire) but does NOT mandate a specific digital format, software interoperability standard, or alphanumeric-grid 'critical incident mapping' deliverable. Pennsylvania has not separately enacted a dedicated digital critical-incident-mapping statute (e.g., a 'Ricky and Alyssa's Law'-style mandate); § 10.24(g) is the existing floor-plan / campus-layout-to-first-responder requirement.[1]

Funding

What grants help Pennsylvania schools pay for mapping?

Pennsylvania districts often combine state and federal programs to fund first-responder mapping, AI threat detection, and emergency communications. We list only currently open or recurring programs; amounts and deadlines change, so confirm each at its official source before applying.

Pennsylvania state programs

PCCD School Safety and Mental Health Grants (FY 2026-27, public school entities)Annual
Funding $138,779,000 total state funding for FY 2026-27, allocated by the formula in 24 P.S. section 13-1314.3-B: school districts receive a $100,000 base amount plus an amount based on 2024-25 Adjusted Average Daily Membership; intermediate units, area career and technical schools, charter, regional charter and cyber charter schools receive $70,000. PCCD notes that $38,000,000 of the total is a one-time infusion of previously uncommitted funds and is expected to decrease in later years.
Public school entities: school districts, intermediate units, area career and technical schools, charter schools, regional charter schools and cyber charter schools. Nonpublic schools apply instead through the Targeted School Safety Grant Program for Nonpublic Schools.
Deadline: Applications must be submitted through PCCD Egrants no later than 11:59 PM on Friday, October 16, 2026. Questions to RA-CD-SSSC@pa.gov must also be received by close of business October 16, 2026.[2]
PCCD Targeted School Safety Grants for Nonpublic Schools Program (FY 2025-26)Closed
Funding $20.7 million total; applicants may request up to $75,000 over a two-year project period. Eligible uses include physical security enhancements (technology and equipment), safety/security assessments, mental health services, and school security personnel training/compensation.
Nonpublic schools (private/diocese/licensed private academic/non-licensed schools, private residential rehabilitation institutions), municipalities, law enforcement agencies, and PCCD-approved school security personnel third-party vendors.
Most recent cycle closed. Confirm the next cycle at the official source.[3]

Federal programs (available nationwide)

COPS School Violence Prevention Program (SVPP)Closed
Funding FY26: up to $73,000,000 total available; maximum federal share of $500,000 per award; approximately 200 awards anticipated; 36-month period of performance starting October 1, 2026. A local cash match of at least 25 percent is required unless a waiver is requested and approved. Approximately $1,000,000 was reserved for microgrants of up to $100,000 for rural, tribal, and low-resourced school districts. These are the closed FY26 figures, not a forecast for FY27.
Funds school security technology and equipment, including systems that speed law-enforcement notification during an emergency. (U.S. Department of Justice - Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office))
Most recent cycle closed. Confirm the next cycle at the official source.Listing: 16.710Full program details[4]
STOP School Violence Program (BJA) - Students, Teachers, and Officers Preventing School ViolenceClosed
Funding FY25 solicitation (the most recent on record): award ceiling $2,000,000, award floor $0, 79 awards anticipated. UNVERIFIED: the total program funding figure and the Category 1 / Category 2 split. The Grants.gov synopsis records total program funding as $2,000,000 against 79 awards at a $2,000,000 ceiling, which is internally inconsistent and appears to be a data-entry artefact, and the previously published ~$83,000,000 total and category breakdown could not be re-confirmed on a primary source in this pass. Treat the per-award ceiling as the reliable figure.
Funds evidence-based violence prevention: threat assessment, anonymous reporting, and law-enforcement coordination (cannot fund cameras, locks, or fencing). (U.S. Department of Justice - Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), Office of Justice Programs)
Most recent cycle closed. Confirm the next cycle at the official source.Listing: 16.839Full program details[5]
Project SERV (School Emergency Response to Violence)Rolling
Funding Awards are sized to the incident and vary widely; there is no published per-award cap and no match requirement. The ten published FY2026 awards range from $25,434 (Lower Kuskokwim School District, AK) to $439,630 (Anchorage School District, AK). FY2025 awards ranged from $12,989 to $1,252,000. Two tiers exist, both at the Secretary's discretion and subject to appropriations: Immediate Services (emergency short-term assistance) and Extended Services (longer recovery).
Funds short-term recovery services, including security measures, after a school experiences a violent or traumatic event. (U.S. Department of Education - Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE), Safe and Supportive Schools)
Deadline: No fixed deadline, event-driven. LEAs and IHEs apply on a rolling basis after a qualifying traumatic event by contacting the Department of Education. The program now lists separate contacts for school-violence SERV and natural-disaster SERV; get the current contact from the official program page rather than a cached address.Listing: 84.184SFull program details[6]

See full details on each federal funding program, including eligibility, deadlines, and how each can apply to responder-ready mapping.

How schools comply

How do Pennsylvania schools go from paper plans to a map responders can actually use?

Rather than refresh a static binder every September, Pennsylvania schools can satisfy section 10.24(g) with one live 3D digital twin from a single LiDAR and drone scan, always current and instantly deployable. PCCD's School Safety grants fund the work for public and nonpublic schools alike. Static PDFs go stale the moment a building changes, and they cannot be shared live with arriving units.

Ark Strategic builds a live 3D digital twin of a campus from a LiDAR and drone scan, often completed in a single day though larger campuses can take longer, with every room, exit, utility shutoff, AED, and access point labeled. Responders reach it two ways, neither of which requires anything new to install: through RapidSOS, the platform already connected to the vast majority of US 911 centers, or in any web browser, since the twin runs in the cloud. Either way, your 911 center and on-scene units see the campus inside tools they already have.

A flat floor plan tells responders where the walls are. A digital twin shows them where to go. The platform and setup are bundled into one deployment, often grant-funded, so there is no separate software line item for the district. See how the K-12 platform works.

FAQ

What else do Pennsylvania districts ask about school mapping?

Does Pennsylvania require school safety mapping?
Yes. By September 30 each year, 22 Pa. Code section 10.24(g) requires every school to have building floor plans, a campus aerial map, command-post locations, and utility shut-offs assembled and ready for immediate deployment to the incident command post for police and fire. Pennsylvania regulation 22 Pa. Code § 10.24(g) requires every school entity, by September 30 each year, to assemble building floor plans/blueprints, a campus aerial/map, command-post locations and related emergency data and have it ready for immediate deployment to the Incident Command Post to assist local police and fire. It mandates the data and document types but not a specific digital mapping format or interoperability standard.
What does School Safety regulations under the Pennsylvania School Code (Emergency and nonemergency response and preparedness) require?
By September 30 of each year, every school entity must assemble and make ready for immediate deployment to the Incident Command Post (the physical location established under its emergency plan per 35 Pa.C.S. § 7701(g)) a defined information package to assist local police and fire in an emergency. The package must include: (1) blueprints or floor plans of the school buildings; (2) an aerial photo, map or layout of the school campus, adjacent properties and surrounding streets/roads; (3) locations of predetermined or prospective command posts; (4) current teacher/employee roster; (5) current student roster; (6) most recent yearbook; (7) fire-alarm shutoff location/procedures; (8) sprinkler-system shutoff location/procedures; (9) gas/utility line layouts and shutoff valve locations; (10) cable/satellite shutoff location/procedures; and (11) any other pertinent information. The regulation prescribes the document types and recipients (local police and fire) but does NOT mandate a specific digital format, software interoperability standard, or alphanumeric-grid 'critical incident mapping' deliverable. Pennsylvania has not separately enacted a dedicated digital critical-incident-mapping statute (e.g., a 'Ricky and Alyssa's Law'-style mandate); § 10.24(g) is the existing floor-plan / campus-layout-to-first-responder requirement.
When must Pennsylvania schools comply?
Recurring annual deadline: September 30 of each year (information must be assembled and ready for immediate deployment by that date). School Safety regulations under the Pennsylvania School Code (Emergency and nonemergency response and preparedness). Districts should confirm current timelines with their state education agency.
What grants help Pennsylvania schools pay for safety mapping?
Pennsylvania districts may be eligible for programs including PCCD School Safety and Mental Health Grants (FY 2026-27, public school entities), Project SERV (School Emergency Response to Violence). Eligibility, amounts, and deadlines vary by program and should be confirmed at each program's official source.
What is critical incident mapping?
Critical incident mapping is the practice of giving first responders accurate, current digital maps of a building, with rooms, exits, utility shutoffs, AEDs, and access points labeled and shareable in real time, so police, fire, and EMS can navigate an unfamiliar campus during an emergency.

New to the terms? See the school safety mapping glossary for plain-language, sourced definitions, or the national FAQ for the questions districts ask most.

Sources

Where does every claim on this page come from?

We do not ask you to take our word for any of this. Each numbered citation above links to its primary government source below, with the date we last verified it. Programs and deadlines change, so confirm current rules at the source. How we verify.

  1. Pennsylvania Code & Bulletin (official) - 22 Pa. Code § 10.24, Emergency and nonemergency response and preparedness verified 2026-08-24
  2. Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, School Safety and Security Committee - 26-27 School Safety & Mental Health Grants funding announcement verified 2026-09-01
  3. Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) newsroom - Shapiro-Davis Admin Launches $20.7M for School Safety and Mental Health Support (official) verified 2026-09-01
  4. COPS Office - School Violence Prevention Program (official program page) verified 2026-09-01
  5. Bureau of Justice Assistance - Available Funding (current open opportunities listing) verified 2026-09-01
  6. U.S. Department of Education - Project SERV (official program page) verified 2026-09-01
Compare across state lines

What do the states bordering Pennsylvania require?

School safety mapping varies by state line. See where the states next door stand.

See how the rest of the Northeast region compares on school safety mapping.

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