Kentucky's School Safety Risk Assessment Report Brings Good News

The Kentucky Office of the State Schools Security Marshal released its yearly report indicating which schools across Kentucky are following statutory safety standards that were passed in 2022.

In the latest School Safety Risk Assessment Report , Kentucky showed a 99.81% following rate for the state’s requirements, which equates to 1,325 schools in compliance with the School Safety and Resiliency Act, known as House Bill 63 , which was signed into law by Governor Andy Beshear (D) in 2022.

“All Kentucky families deserve to have their children and loved ones go to school each day and not worry about their safety in the classroom,” said Gov. Beshear in a press release. “This report shows that Kentucky’s schools are serious about safety, and both as Governor and as a dad, I am thankful for the work school officials have committed to getting us where we are today.”

Since 2022, every public school in the Commonwealth has been required to employ a school resource officer, with the number of SROs assigned to school campuses increasing to 790, which the Security Marshal says is a 28% increase from last year, and a 61% increase from 2022 when the bill was signed.

Gov. Beshear included $18.2 million to help with this endeavor back in the 2020 state budget , which led to improvements in safety over the last four years.

“Once again, Kentucky’s schools have shown their commitment to keeping students and teachers safe,” said State School Security Marshal Ben Wilcox in a statement. “Our school resource officers have done an excellent job obtaining their certification to be the first line of defense and keep harm away from our children. On behalf of Kentucky’s parents, I thank them for their work and the dedication they show every day.”