Borough Leadership United: In Their Own Words
LEADING ENGAGEMENT
Our district works closely with the local organizations that keep us safe, informed, and connected as a community. Dr. Ashley Boyers, Assistant Superintendent, explains,“ We are truly fortunate to have such strong partnerships with our local first responder groups, and we are deeply grateful for their ongoing collaboration and support in keeping our schools safe. These relationships not only enhance the security of our students and staff, but also create meaningful opportunities for connection and learning. Together we can keep our schools safe by modeling the power of collective action to better serve the community at large.”
From fire, police, and EMS first responders to the Plum Chamber and Borough Council, PBSD collaborates with these agencies to share resources and improve safety and efficiency district-wide. Here are just some of the ways our district and borough leadership are working together to protect and empower our entire community.
Plum Borough Police Department The PBPD proudly supports the district by participating in the following programs:
• Routine daily patrols of each school in the borough increase officers’ knowledge of building layouts and foster feelings of safety and security among students and staff.
• Provide security during regular season and playoff football games.
• Operation Safe Stop, a collaboration with PennDOT’ s Highway Safety Network, to identify and improve challenging school bus stop situations.
• Juvenile Detective Joe Little provides PBSD with annual training to ensure all teachers and staff understand their mandated responsibilities for reporting incidents or allegations of child abuse. PBPD’ s Drug Recognition Expert( DRE) has developed a new educational course on the dangers of impaired driving, which will be presented during the 2025-26 school year.
• Macy’ s annual“ Shop with a Cop” community outreach in August, which connects PBPD with underprivileged families and provides students with gift cards to buy clothes and shoes for the start of the new school year.
Holiday Park Volunteer Fire Department The Holiday Park VFD contributes to the following safety and enrichment activities:
• Providing educational materials and speakers for Fire Prevention Week.
• Book Reading Days with PBSD elementary students.
• Annual Career Day, where Chief Officers speak with high school students.
• Working with students to help them earn their community service hours.
• Annual UMSC Toys for Tots toy collection and delivery night.
• End of summer cleaning of elementary school playground equipment. New this year, the VFD supported the inaugural firefighter certification program at Plum Senior High School, in cooperation with Allegheny Fire Academy. PBSD also provides VFD with access to the Plum Senior High School pool for rescue training and school buses for VFD cadet transport and bus rescue drills.
James A. Sims, Chief of the Holiday Park Volunteer Fire Department, notes that the VFD Junior Firefighter Program has 18 teens involved, 90 % of whom are from Plum Senior High School:“ These juniors are the future of our borough’ s fire service, and the district is a vital part of our recruitment pool.”
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Borough Leadership United: In Their Own Words
" Dr. Walsh truly has the students ' best interests at heart. Previously, the district operated separately from the borough, which made effective communication difficult. Now, each department has direct communication with the district, which leads to more efficient operation for programs like lockdown drills, EMS training of district staff, and even testing fire hydrants to ensure they work properly.”— Paul Dern, Plum Borough Council President
" Working in tandem with the district is crucial for our community. The police department and the district frequently meet to discuss student and community safety and share resources in case of emergency. We ' ve also conducted tabletop exercises to simulate appropriate emergency responses for first responders and district personnel. This constant collaboration assists in providing our children and our community with the safest environment possible. One community, one goal."— Lanny Conley, Chief of the Plum Police Department
" In over 25 years of EMS work in several areas of Allegheny County, I ' ve never had such an incredible relationship with a school district. We work closely together, as it takes a community to support each other when times get tough. But it ' s also understood that it takes planning and time to be ready for worst-case scenarios, while always hoping for the best.”— Brian Maloney, Director of Operations of Plum EMS
" These collaborations enhance preparedness and understanding between our organizations, and they also give students and residents confidence that their schools and community are supported by a unified team committed to their well-being. It also fosters our volunteer mantra, where we build a pipeline for future VFD members to help grow the leaders of tomorrow."— James A. Sims, Chief of the Holiday Park Volunteer Fire Department
Plum Borough School District PLUM BOROUGH SCHOOL DISTRICT NEWS
PLUM | WINTER 2025 33