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School Resource Officer

K-9
Facility dog Betsy is an invaluable presence at the Wrightstown Community School District, bringing joy and relief to students, staff and officers alike
School resource officer Nicholas Calello helps one of his students fix his tie before graduation
“In reality, in the 2020s, if we are not looking at the digital footprint of a student of concern, we are really not doing a comprehensive threat assessment.”
SRO
The new law, signed by Gov. Tim Walz on March 14, comes after more than 40 agencies suspended their school resource officer programs last year in response to a law that generated confusion about restraint restrictions
“California has experienced 96 school shootings between 2018 and 2023. If we want to get serious about preventing school shootings ... we need good guys, and girls, with guns, ready to act,” Assemblyman Bill Essayli said
The bill aims to clarify the confusion surrounding a 2023 state law that put new restrictions on officers’ use of prone restraints on students in schools
“It is no reflection on the great work our police officers were doing in schools...” Superintendent Larry Snelling said. “CPD is going to continue to do what we’ve always done: Protect our children, protect the streets”
Board members who opposed the creation of the police department cited prospective difficulty in recruiting officers and criticized the “lack of research” that went into the proposal
It’s important to remember your audience when talking to school staff about safety
To help pay for the program, the Broward County school district may phase out its guardian program, which provides 120 armed security guards, and replace them with sworn police officers
Deputy Scot Peterson cited other cases that say officers don’t have an obligation to protect others from third-party harm and cannot be sued for decisions made during a crisis
The “school safety officers” do not do other police work like SROs do, but do use police radios for speedier emergency response, unlike private security guards
The Hennepin County attorney’s interpretation of the student restraint law “puts us back to where we were roughly two weeks ago, Minn. Chiefs of Police Association Executive Director Jeff Potts said
Minnesota law enforcement associations are asking for a special legislative session on the SRO law that changed the “reasonable force standard” in schools
“Every child and every parent should feel an absolute peace of mind as they travel to and from school,” Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said
Police groups say the legislation prohibits school resource officers from taking action in situations in which students damage property or present a physical danger
One superintendent said they will not rush planning or “take unnecessary risks because these folks are responsible for protecting our children and our campuses”
Districts will have the same SROs consistently, rather than off-duty officers from other departments, allowing for a better relationship with students
Board members who voted to reinstate the officers cited the rise in teen gun violence and the increasing number of weapons found on DPS campuses
The language of the new law states SROs are prohibited from using certain types of restraints when trying to control unruly students
Bryan Holley, a 31-year law enforcement veteran, devoted 10 years of service to the Hudson Independent School District Police Department
Ivy Jurgensen credits the SRO with helping save her life, inspiring her to later become an SRO
Right now, the Broward school district contracts with 13 different municipalities, which provide school resource officers from city PDs or the sheriff’s office
The statewide program awarded $25 million in funds to go toward the SRO hires, which the state said will help protect over 334,000 students
A recent allocation of $5.25 million in state funding became accessible in response to The Covenant School shooting, but MNPD officials say they don’t have the capacity to staff its 70 public schools
A child walked behind a vehicle was backing up during school drop-off; Officer Mike Stallone quickly raced toward the child and moved her to safety
The vote to reinstate SROs comes after a student shot and wounded two administrators inside Denver’s largest high school
While much attention is given to responding to attacks in progress, increased research provides hope for earlier intervention and prevention of school violence
To improve school safety against active shooters, we must work on prevention, disruption and response through a multitude of options