by John Leo & Laura Kapuscinski
We support Police. Moreover, we support having an appropriately trained officer in each school with the primary responsibility of keeping our students and staff safe.
The officers placed in schools are very specific and special for the school environment. A SRO (School Resource Officer) is a full-time police officer who is responsible for teaching the LEAD (Law Enforcement Against Drugs) program throughout the District and travels from school to school. The SRO is trained and selected specifically to interface with children. A Class III Officer is a state sanctioned retired police officer who is assigned to a school or schools. The primary focus of the Class III officer is on security in and around the school(s). Class III officers are also hand selected to excel in interfacing positively with children.
When we talk about safety in schools the conversation about what safety looks like can become divisive quickly. Some would go so far as to have metal detectors required at schools and some don’t want any presence of police. As with everything, we need to listen and understand the many voices so as to reach a common ground in core values. Parents generally unite on the need for a safe educational environment, but some believe the notion that a police presence subtracts from that. For us, there is no greater security asset than a qualified adult whose primary role in our schools is to ensure the safety of our schools, our children and our staff.
We are lucky to have a police Chief and department that realizes and brings to life a community-centric safety structure. The very simple yet valuable idea of police interaction with our children, and specifically in our schools, is that positive relationships enhance safety and build community. The Berkeley Heights Police Department have demonstrated, time and time again, their professionalism and commitment to our children and our township. And, in our particular police system here, it’s working. It is proven often that the police are seen as safe resources every time a student feels confident enough to speak up about something that they have deemed threatening. We know for example, that as of the recent incident in CMS, students felt comfortable reaching out to the officer that was present. And it’s not easy for many of our adolescents to speak up about such things.
Currently we have one SRO that rotates among six schools and two Class III officers fixed to CMS and GL. The Superintendent has recommended, in the upcoming budget, two additional Class III officers for the four elementary schools. As planned as their location at a given time may currently be, it is still random as to their availability to a given school at any time.
We hope the Superintendent and Board would consider a final budget goal for a dedicated officer at each of our six schools to provide a very reasonable and effective security resource equitably to all our Berkley Heights students.