Student and school safety measure moves through Senate

OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma public and private schools, along with careertechs, would become more secure under legislation approved Tuesday by the Senate. Retired educator, Sen. Dewayne Pemberton, R-Muskogee, authored Senate Bill 100 to require each school district to undergo a risk and vulnerability assessment by the Oklahoma School Security Institute (OSSI) by July 1, 2026.

“During our work last year in the bipartisan School Safety Working Group, one of our main concerns was increasing the safety of Oklahoma’s 2,000-plus school sites, and it became apparent that we needed one entity to assess these facilities to ensure uniform security throughout our school systems,” Pemberton said. “With the mental health crisis sweeping our nation, it’s imperative that families can rest assured these campuses and their children and other loved ones are safe. These assessments will provide our districts critical guidance to secure their facilities.”

As chair of the working group, Pemberton and his colleagues met with school administrators, teachers, and parents from around the state to learn about the varying degrees of security available in districts. SB 100 was a result of those meetings. Re-assessments would be conducted every five years, and any district that has already undergone an assessment in the last two years would be exempt.

The OSSI was created following recommendations by the Oklahoma Commission on School Security in 2013 in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Connecticut.

SB 100 now moves across the rotunda, where Rep. Dick Lowe, R-Amber, is serving as the House author.

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For more information, contact:  Sen. Pemberton: (405) 521-5533 or Dewayne.Pemberton@oksenate.gov