The West York Area School District board of directors announced the appointment of Ivan Quinones, district school safety and security coordinator, as a school security guard, as outlined in a resolution approved on Aug. 20 by the board. The school safety and security coordinator position that Quinones holds is a component of Senate Bill 1142, Act 44, signed into law by Gov. Tom Wolf in June 2018.
Going a step further to improve school safety measures, Act 67 of 2019 amended Article XXII-C of the Public School Code, to clarify that a school district may contract and/or employ school security guards with authority to carry firearms on school grounds subject to those individuals satisfying the applicable training and/or certification requirements specified in Section 1314-C of the Public School Code, 24 P.S. § 13-1314-C.
In his role as safety and security coordinator, Quinones develops, implements, and continuously assesses the effectiveness of the district's safety and security plan. This includes working with two district school resource officers (SROs), event security, local law enforcement, and emergency responders. He also serves as the liaison to the statewide School Safety and Security Committee, the Pennsylvania Department of Education, and other relevant outside entities.
Quinones holds a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from the University of Maryland and is currently pursuing a Master of Science in public safety and administration. He served in the United States Marine Corps for four years prior to his career as commander with the Maryland State Police.
Most recently, Quinones served as the director of public safety and security for all of the campuses of HACC, Central Pennsylvania's Community College. Other notable accomplishments include work as an instructor for law enforcement and his role as an adviser to legislators regarding the development of Act 44 and on the PA Safety Task Force. Quinones also possesses all of the necessary training and certifications to appropriately fulfill the duties of an armed school security guard.
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