SRO will be housed at the high school
MANLIUS -- There will soon be extra security in the Fayetteville-Manlius school district.
On Monday, the school board approved hiring a school resource officer, according to a press release from the district. School officials tell CNY Central the officer will be armed.
The SRO's main responsibility will be to educate students about the district's code of conduct.
"Parents and community members entrust the school district with its children, and it is the district's responsibility to ensure that students are safe and secure when in our care," said Board President Marissa Mims in a press release. "We have adopted core values that include cultivating a school climate of civility and strong character. An SRO would help promote those values throughout our district."
The hope is by hiring an SRO, it would allow students to form a relationship with the officer that may prevent drugs, alcohol, and bullying issues.
Right now, a Manlius police officer serves as an SRO for the East Syracuse-Minoa school district.
The F-M SRO would report to the high school, but would be available to work with students and staff in any of the district's buildings.
The earliest the SRO would be in place is July 1st.
"We look forward to working with someone who will allow us to further our mission and goals while being a resource for us when there are incidents that require the involvement of local law enforcement, as there occasionally are in any school district," said Superintendent Corliss Kaiser in a press release.
About 40% of Onondaga-Cortland-Madison BOCES school districts employ SROs, who are on-duty police officers. Only five of those districts have populations at or exceeding the number of students at F-M High School, according to a recent survey conducted by the FM administration.
In December, the F-M Safety & Security Task Force recommended to the board that the district hire an SRO. The task force is made up of teachers, administrators, parents, students, and elected officials.
"Task force members believe the addition of an SRO would enable the district to focus on continuous improvement of the safety and security of the internal and external facilities and grounds and the important work of education and mentoring of youth," the F-M Safety & Security Task Force Final Report states. "While not at epidemic stages, drugs, alcohol, and face-to-face bullying and cyber bullying are a concern here, as in all schools."
Click here for more about the research behind the recommendation.
Do you agree with the decision to hire a school resource officer? Will it make schools safer? Should the officer be armed? Why or why not? Leave your thoughts below.
