Forty-five schools in the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh are upping their security level after a shooting at a school in Minneapolis killed two young children and injured 17 others.

When he first got word of the tragedy at Annunciation Catholic Church, Wendell D. Hissrich, the man who heads up the Diocese of Pittsburgh's security and safety, got on the phone.

"We immediately reached out to all of our officers within the diocese, which we currently have 24 officers, and asked them to exhibit extra vigilance throughout the school system," Hissrich said. 

Hissrich says in addition to elevating the district's security posture, he requested help from the outside.

"I've been in touch with some law enforcement counterparts. They've also offered to add extra patrols around the schools," he said. 

"It would be typical that all of our schools would be what we would call in a secure mode, regardless. All of the outside doors locked, checking the people that are coming into the building, all of the precautions that they'd make on a regular basis," said Superintendent Lauren Martin. 

Speaking at the yearly Catholic schools report, Bishop Mark Eckman said he was focusing on making sure the 12,000 students in the district feel safe and secure.

"Probably, I'm going to expect our schools office will dispatch counselors, so if any children are worried about this type of situation, that they'll have someone to speak with," Eckman said. 

The Diocese of Pittsburgh said the shooting touches its church "in a particular way," calling Hebda a "native son." 

"Archbishop Hebda, who is the bishop of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, is a Pittsburgher, so our prayers go out to him as well as he shepherds his people through this tragic event," Eckman said.

Meanwhile, the Diocese of Greensburg released the following statement: 

"The Diocese of Greensburg Police Department is aware of the unfolding situation in South Minneapolis.  At this time, there is no information available that would indicate that this heinous act is anything more than an isolated incident at that location.  The DOGPD constantly maintains a level of readiness in anticipation of such an incident at one of our schools.  At this time, schools are operating as normal."