Private and religious schools receive city funding for security

We have felt, locally, very responded to and proactively thought about and I think this bill reinforced that commitment.”

Rabbi Binyamin Krauss, principal at SAR Academy

Walk into a public school in New York City and you’ll likely be greeted by an NYPD’s School Safety Division agent. However, not all private and religious schools in the city have the same opportunity. That’s about to change. 

On Dec. 24, 2024, the city council passed a bill to expand on New York City’s Non-Public School Security Reimbursement Program (NPS), designed to offer reimbursement for non-public schools with a paid security detail.

The law, originally passed in 2015, covers the costs associated with hiring and paying an allotted number of security guards for school safety. 

With the NPS program, funding is provided for security guards and no further measures. 

The bill “increases the total maximum reimbursement funds available to schools,” according to an email from Councilmember Justin Brannan’s office who was instrumental in passing bill. 

Originally, it offered a maximum available fund of $19.8 million for all the schools it covered. As of last month, the funding increased to $35 million and will be renewed every school year. 

Previously, the bill applied to schools with 300-plus students. With the increased funding, schools with students numbering 150 or more are now eligible. 

Prior to the expansion, schools with students numbering 300 through 499 were reimbursed for the cost of one security guard while schools with at least 500 students were be reimbursed for two security guards. Funding for one additional security guard was provided for every additional 500 students. 

Salanter Akiba Riverdale (SAR) Academy at 655 West 254th St. is already enrolled in the NPS program. 

“We are using the money and it's very helpful and important to us,” the school’s principal, Rabbi Binyamin Krauss said. 

Krauss declined to go into detail of the school’s current security measures in the interest of student safety, but he feels well supported by the funding. 

“We have felt, locally, very responded to and proactively thought about and I think this bill reinforced that commitment,” Krauss said. 

Krauss was happy to hear about the bill expanding to other schools, especially as SAR Academy directly benefits from the grant. 

As the school grows and the need for funding grows, the program has helped to keep the overall cost down as SAR spends close to $1 million annually on security protocols for its more than 970 students, according to Krauss. 

Since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack in Israel, the school and the neighboring community has been on high alert and concerned for the safety of its Jewish students. But Krauss said the academy feels protected by local officials and police. 

“Over the last couple of years and certainly in the last year, there’s been a feeling and a need for increased security,” Krauss said. “So, we’ve done that regardless of what the support was.”

St. Margaret of Cortona-St. Gabriel School told a different story.

The school’s principal, Richard Kruczek said the Catholic Archdiocese provides the school’s security, both the funding and the company through which it hires its security guards. 

The school of more than 340 students operates with an extensive camera system and one security guard, but Kruczek said it is more than enough for the daily operations. 

“We have a very good grip on all the goings on in our buildings and in the surrounding areas,” Kruczek said. 

Despite the school’s security being privately funded, Kruczek was grateful the funding is available for other schools that are in need. 

“It can only be a blessing to all of our schools, the non-public [schools] in particular,” Kruczek said. 

Mary Grace Walsh, superintendent for Schools for the Archdiocese of New York is grateful for the funding.

“On behalf of Catholic Schools in the Archdiocese of New York, we thank the city council for passing legislation that will enhance the safety of our schoolchildren by making 28 additional Archdiocesan schools eligible for security guards,” Walsh wrote in an email. 

While the expansion focuses on non-public schools, city public schools take security measures with a variety of programs. Some include school safety agents, operating scanners in schools that check for weapons, absentee and lateness programs to help keep kids in school, gang prevention and intervention and digital citizenship responsibilities to tackle cyberbullying and online safety issues.

According to a spokesperson from Brannan, the city council estimates funding could reach nearly 100,000 students at 400 newly eligible schools across the five boroughs.

The expansion will take effect at the beginning of the 2025-2026 school year.