Sen. Schwank and Rep. Rozzi Announce $7.8 Million Grant for Antietam School District

Reading - September 9, 2024 - Sen. Judy Schwank (D-Berks) and Rep. Mark Rozzi (D-Berks) today announced $7.8 million in grant funding for the Antietam School District for environmental repairs.

The funding comes from the Pennsylvania Department of Education's Public School Environmental Repairs Program, established as part of the 2023-24 fiscal year state budget. The new grant program provides assistance to remediate environmental hazards in school buildings.

Schwank and Rozzi have worked together since flooding hit Antietam Middle Senior High School on July 9, 2023. The lawmakers engaged the governor's office and the Department of Education to assist the school district after Pennsylvania's request for a Major Disaster Declaration from the Federal Emergency Management Agency was denied. Schwank and Rozzi also collaborated with leaders in the House and Senate to create grant funding programs to help the school district with facility repairs.

"This significant investment was a long time coming and will help put Antietam School District on the path to a full, long-term recovery," Schwank said. "Since flooding devastated our area last year, we've explored every possible avenue to make the district whole again and provide students with the safe educational facilities they deserve. I want to express my thanks to the entire Antietam community for their patience while we worked internally to secure this funding."

"The severe flooding that hit Antietam Middle Senior High School last year presented an unprecedented challenge for the entire community," Rozzi said. "It was clear to us that the state needed to be part of finding a solution, and this historic investment is a major step in that process. This funding announcement is the culmination of months of hard work."

In addition to the Public School Environmental Repairs Program, the 2023-24 fiscal year state budget also created the Public School Facility Improvement Grant Program, administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development. This is an opportunity for Antietam to secure further funding, and the district has submitted two applications.

Funding announcements for the Public School Facility Improvement Grant Program are expected to be made in the coming months. Schwank and Rozzi have endorsed Antietam's application and requested DCED waive the required match associated with the grant under an emergency clause stipulated in the grant guidelines.