Safe Schools Advocate Appointed for Philadelphia School District

HARRISBURG, Pa., Dec. 1, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Kelley Hodge has been named the Safe Schools Advocate for the School District of Philadelphia, the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) announced today. 

Hodge will serve as an advocate on behalf of students who are victims of crime on school district property. As such, she will work within the school district's disciplinary process as well as in coordination with police, prosecutors, the courts and victim service providers. Hodge will also monitor the school district's compliance with its reporting of violent incidents to Philadelphia police department and the Pennsylvania Department of Education. 

Hodge, 40, of Philadelphia, has more than 14 years of legal experience, working both as a prosecutor and a public defender. Most recently, she worked as assistant chief for the Juvenile Court Unit of the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office.

In addition to supervising 17 assistant district attorneys, Hodge also served as liaison between the district attorney's office and juvenile court judiciary, working to reduce the level of violent crime involving juveniles, both as victims and offenders.

In making the announcement today, PCCD Chairman Mark Zimmer said Hodge's professional experience as both a public defender in Richmond, Va. and an assistant district attorney in Philadelphia, with substantial experience in the juvenile justice system, will contribute greatly to her ability to serve the students and families as the new Safe Schools Advocate in the School District of Philadelphia.

Working under the direction of the PCCD, Hodge will operate out of the Safe School Advocate's new office at 440 N. Broad St., Philadelphia.

"I am honored to have been selected for the position of Safe Schools Advocate," said Hodge. "I am looking forward to working with all the public safety and education partners who are equally invested in promoting a safe learning and teaching environment within the School District of Philadelphia."

Hodge said her first order of business is to make sure that all parents, students and teachers know that her office is available and accessible to assist them when questions or situations arise regarding safety within their school.

A graduate of the University of Virginia and the University of Richmond's T.C. Williams School of Law, Hodge worked in the Richmond public defender's office from 1997 to 2003.  A native of the Philadelphia area, Hodge returned in 2004, when she joined the district attorney's office.

For more information about PCCD or the Office of Safe Schools Advocate, visit www.pccd.state.pa.us.

Media contact:  Melanie Horvath, 717-265-8470 or 717-307-1388 (cell)

SOURCE Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency