By Michael Hayes
State Sen. Dante Bartolomeo was appointed today to serve on a bipartisan, legislative task force that will explore ways to make Connecticut a safer place for families and children in the wake of the tragic Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings in Newtown.
Sen. Bartolomeo, who serves the towns of the 13th Senate District which include Middletown, Meriden, Middlefield, Rockfall and Cheshire, has been selected to serve on the school security working group of the newly announced Bipartisan Task Force on Gun Violence Prevention and Children's Safety.
"The tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School cannot be allowed to repeat itself in Connecticut or anywhere across America. There is an ongoing, national conversation underway right now in our country about ways to achieve that," said Bartolomeo.
"As Senate Chairman of the Children's Committee, I feel a special obligation to talk to parents, educators and public safety officials in my district and hear what they have to say about ways to improve school security. They are on the forefront of what's happening in our schools, with our kids, and their input should prove invaluable. I look forward to meeting with them."
Sen. Bartolomeo has already contacted the school superintendents in each of the four towns she represents -- Meriden, Cheshire, Middletown and Middlefield — in order to arrange a tour of some public schools in the district.
Those tours — which are expected to include parents, educators, public safety personnel and town leaders — will be used to gather input and information that Sen. Bartolomeo will then use to propose legislation to improve school safety in Connecticut.
