Justin served for six years as one of two school board members on the School Divisions Safe Schools Advisory Council. During his time on the council, the team has provided annual Parent Information awareness and resources for various topics like suicide awareness, bullying prevention, social media, gang violence, and resiliency, and completed a full audit of the school’s current state of security. The school system’s audit included a full review of security policies and protocols with the intention to bring the best practices.

During Justin’s first term, he collaborated with the former Gainesville Board Member to expand the number of counselors, social workers, and psychologists within Prince William County Schools. The board also allocated an additional 1 million dollars to complete secured entrances throughout all elementary schools in Prince William County. These enhancements included new security cameras, a secured building entrance, and a buzzer system. Justin also secured funding for public service announcements at local cinemas covering the topic of gang awareness.

Thanks to Justin’s advocacy, former Superintendent Walts asked Justin to represent the school board in a June 2019 video outlining the new safety procedures. You can watch this video outlining Justin’s advocacy by clicking here or watching below.

Justin’s second term on the board saw a rapid expansion in school security resources. The current school board added security personnel to all elementary schools and increased the number of security officials at all middle and high schools. Despite not having enough police officer candidates to provide an SRO in every building, the school board continues to add security personnel and more counselors, psychologists, and social workers for student mental health.

The Prince William County School Board has remained proactive and reformed the Title 9 Office by adding more qualified investigators and legal counsel.

As part of our ongoing commitment to safer schools, PWCS is implementing safety screening technology at all high, middle, and nontraditional schools for the 2023-24 school year. The Evolve weapon detectors will add another layer of security and serve as a deterrent for any future acts of violence in our schools.