Lakeview School District is well prepared for a medical emergency.

Through a state grant, the district was able to obtain for free two heart-starting defibrillators.

Last month, six staff members were trained by Jonathan Bailey and Dick Craig Jr. of UPMC Horizon and Keith Shilling of Life Force Ambulance to use the devices, which are at the middle school-high school building and at Oakview Elementary.

"We really appreciate the state for having done this," said Dave Sapala, assistant to the superintendent at Lakeview. "Any way we can be prepared to help others in an emergency ... it was really a wonderful thing that the state has done by supplying this," said Sapala, who wrote the applications for the defibrillators.

Lakeview is not alone.

Mercer County school districts are among the nearly 400 in the state that have applied for the free devices under a one-time, $2.5 million program approved by the Legislature in May, according to the education department. Districts may purchase additional defibrillators at a discounted price of $1,445 -- they typically cost between $2,500 and $3,500 -- under a bulk contract secured by the state.

Pennsylvania is the first state to provide school districts with defibrillators, according to the Pittsburgh-based nonprofit National Center for Early Defibrillation.

Similar legislation is being considered in Illinois and New Jersey.

About the size of a laptop computer, modern defibrillators have thin, flexible panels that are laid on the victim. A computerized voice tells the user when to deliver a potentially lifesaving shock or to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Reynolds Area School District bought a defibrillator several years ago for sports teams but has two more -- one in each of the two nurse's offices -- because of the grant program, said school psychologist Dr. Martin Friedman.

Friedman said school board member Dr. George Reeher has supported the use of defibrillators for years and helped to write the grant application.

Sharpsville Area School District also recently received two defibrillators from the state, said Superintendent Dr. Derry Stufft.

Richard A. Rossi, superintendent of Sharon City Schools, said the district received the two free defibrillators and bought additional machines so that each of the buildings has one.

During the summer an in-service training session will be set so people in each building will know how to operate the machine, Rossi said. He added that a committee will decide where the defibrillators will be placed and who will be trained to use them.

Grove City schools Superintendent Dr. Robert Post said the district has two defibrillators but did not buy any others. Post said district officials are deciding the best way to provide training and will receive a training kit that includes a practice defibrillator -- one without electric current.

One defibrillator will be placed in the high school and one in the middle school, Post said. He added that the devices will be kept near areas that have high concentrations of people, like the gym and auditorium.

Hermitage School District received two defibrillators in February and staff members were trained Feb. 15, Superintendent Karen Ionta said. One device is stored in the high school gym; the other is in the Artman Elementary gym.

Farrell schools began training staff members on two new units this week, said school nurse Janet L. Thiel.

"We want to get our coaches and nurses and the teachers trained," said Ms. Thiel, who will handle training duties with athletic trainer Tim McMahon.

When Farrell decided to apply for the state grant, the district formed a committee to determine training and where the units would be kept, she said.

Other county schools which have defibrillators include Greenville, West Middlesex, Mercer and Jamestown.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.