Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Pennsylvania SD Adds Bullet-Resistant Glass to New School Plans

  • By Yvonne Marquez
  • 08/30/19

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

  • How Proactive Maintenance Can Transform Athletic Facilities into Strategic Assets for College Sports

    College athletics is entering one of the most transformative periods in its history. With NIL reshaping financial models and competitive expectations, athletic departments across the country are being asked to do more than ever with increasingly constrained resources.

  • Can AI Help Build Stronger Communities in Student Housing?

    Student housing success is shifting from operational performance to student experience, with belonging now at the center. A recent 2025 report underscores a growing emphasis on student well-being, community, and engagement, signaling that expectations now extend beyond logistics to ensure students feel supported in their living environments. AI is enabling that shift by reducing administrative workload and giving teams more time to focus on meaningful student engagement.

  • Texas District Breaks Ground on Second High School

    The Waller Independent School District in Waller, Texas, recently held a groundbreaking ceremony for what will become its second high school, according to a news release.

  • Vanderbilt to Partner with ABM for Campus Preservation and Modernization

    Vanderbilt University recently announced that it has selected ABM Performance Solutions for a preservation and modernization project at its New York City campus, according to a news release. ABM will deliver its end-to-end ABM Performance Solutions (APS) model to manage critical operations during renovation and maintenance.