Archdiocese of Miami urges Florida to fund private school security, citing high costs and security concerns

The Archdiocese of Miami is calling on the state of Florida to help finance security measures for its private schools, arguing that safety costs should not fall exclusively on parents.

"We believe the state should help to offset the cost of safety and security," said Jim Rigg, Superintendent of the Archdiocese of Miami. Rigg emphasized that school security "is and has always been a top priority," adding, "We take strong precautions to make sure our students and employees are safe".

Currently, the price of security at all private schools is covered through parents' tuition and donations. For example, Saint Teresa, one of the largest Catholic schools in Miami, pays $250,000 for security measures.

The call for state funding is championed by Father Manny Alvarez, a priest at the Church of the Little Flower in Coral Gables, who described the effort as a personal mission.

"I was a priest in Parkland. I know kids are inside Marjory Stoneman Douglas, and for me, this is something that is personal," Father Alvarez said. "Every single kid in that school is sacred, and I want to make sure that they get to go home to their parents at the end of the day".

Father Alvarez hopes the legislature will fund security for all schools in the state, regardless of whether they are public, private, or religious.

Parents reacted positively to the proposal. Mercedes Prada, a parent, said, "If it's included other schools in charter schools in public schools, it should be in private as well".

Mercedes Falcon, a grandparent, agreed. "I think it's wonderful if they do that instead of it coming out of our pockets. Everything else is coming out of our pockets; might as well the state do it too".

The next step in the initiative involves urging parents to contact their state legislators, senators, and state representatives about the proposal.