Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam announced yesterday the near-completion of the statewide school safety assessment and the release of $35 million to help improve the security of schools across the state.

The governor’s school safety working group announced in March the first-ever statewide assessment of school facilities, safety procedures and safety needs.

A total of $25 million will go towards one-time improvements that will address vulnerabilities and risks. The remaining $10 million will be in the form of recurring grant funding.

The statewide assessment is nearly complete. Ninety-nine percent of public schools in the state have already been checked. The remaining are set to be complete by the end of this month.

The state is working to secure a developer to complete a statewide school safety mobile application. This would allow students, faculty and staff to anonymously report concerns to local law enforcement and school officials.