New grants ensure Wisconsin police have school maps during crises

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) - A two-million-dollar state program aims to make sure law enforcement officers can find the layout of any school in the state right from their smartphone, or other devices, in case of an emergency.

The initiative comes as part of changes to state law that allow public and private school districts, which were previously required to provide blueprints of their schools to local authorities, to submit digital mapping data instead.

To help compile the mapping data, the state Department of Justice’s Office of School Safety plans to distribute $2 million among school boards and private school administrators for the information.

In a statement from DOJ, Sheboygan Police Chief Christopher Domagalski explained such critical incident mapping has already proven effective in schools and businesses, adding that “[p]roviding this grant to Wisconsin schools will be an additional tool that law enforcement has in protecting our schools, our citizens, and our communities.”

The window to apply for the grant started at the beginning of July; however, it was only open for those schools that had not so far submitted such mapping data. After Thursday, any school will be allowed to apply for a grant. Submissions will be reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis, until the grant money is gone.

More information on the grants is available here.