Pennsylvania SD Adds Bullet-Resistant Glass to New School Plans

The Wilkes-Barre Area School District approved an upgrade to safety measures for a new high school still under construction. The school board voted to add bullet-resistant glass along the building’s perimeter and in the school’s entryway. The glass adds a $460,000 cost to the project and will be installed by Sterling Glass.

"Unfortunately, this — school shootings, and active shootings, shooters — [is] something we have to contend with and deal with, and this is a measure we can take to try to make those kids as safe as possible," Shawn Walker, vice president of the Wilkes-Barre Area School Board, told a local news reporter.

The total budget for the project is $121 million and includes $7 million for contingent expenses. The new school will combine the district’s three high schools into one.

Construction for the new high school began earlier this year and is expected to be completed in 2021.

About the Author

Yvonne Marquez is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. She can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • College of the Desert Hits Construction Milestone on New Campus

    College of the Desert recently announced that the construction of its new Palm Springs Campus in Palm Springs, Calif., recently reached a major construction milestone, according to a news release. The college is partnering with general contractor C.W. Driver Companies, which recently “topped out” the facility by placing the final beam in its structure.

  • Chartwells Launches Campus Dining Evaluation Framework

    Contract food-service management provider Chartwells Higher Education recently announced the launch of BLUEPRINT, according to a news release. The evaluation framework was designed to provide a data-driven and customizable roadmap towards optimizing campus dining services and, by extension, the student experience.

  • Agricultural Sciences Complex

    Agricultural Sciences Complex

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. The College of Western Idaho's Agricultural Sciences Complex has been recognized with an EDS 2026 Grand Prize award in the category of New Construction.

  • Pitzer College

    Designing for Change in Higher Ed Learning Environments

    Higher education will continue to evolve, and learning environments must evolve with it. By prioritizing adaptable infrastructure, thoughtful reuse, strong energy performance, and wellness-centered design, campuses can create spaces that support learning today while remaining flexible for the future.