SRO program continues for now

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August 19, 2010

Teresa Williams The Times Enterprise Thu Aug 19, 2010, 09:09 PM EDT

THOMASVILLE — Thomasville City Manager Steve Sykes said Thursday the city has agreed to provide the City School System’s School Resource Officer, or SRO, program for free for the remaining school year.

Sykes continued to say that he has requested the school superintendent seek city school board approval for $25,000 next year and $50,000 the following year.

This comes on the heels of Wednesday’s City Council workshop, which featured several participants including members of the Thomasville Police Department, a local civic organization and the general public.

City Schools Superintendent Sabrina Boykins-Everett did not attend Wednesday’s workshop because it was her understanding it was only an information session with the SROs, but was pleased with the outcome.

Everett said the system would be discussing SRO funding, and that she is aware of the city’s offer.

At Wednesday’s meeting, TPD Assistant Chief Troy Rich gave a report on the SRO program to the council and the audience.

“The purpose of the SRO program is to provide a positive officer presence at all Thomasville City Schools,” he said.

“This will allow an immediate and consistent police response to illegal activity on school grounds and give police officers an avenue for positive interaction with students through classroom instruction and counseling in law enforcement related problems.”

Officer Dominic Ford, an SRO, spoke of the daily responsibilities of an SRO as a law enforcement officer, teacher and counselor.

“We’re there to provide a safe environment and security for the schools and system,” he said.

SROs patrol school campus grounds, respond to and investigate criminal activity make arrests on school campuses, prepare written reports, prepare juvenile cases and testify in juvenile court, and assist with traffic safety enforcement.

An SRO is also a teacher, Ford explained, and said several programs are offered to the schools, such as the Gang Resistance Education and Training, or G.R.E.A.T., and Drug Abuse Resistance Education, or D.A.R.E.

SROs are also counselors, role models and super heroes.

“Kids come to us every day with issues going on in their lives,” Ford said. “There’s fantasy versus reality and reality is, when they are going through all those different things in their lives, they can’t call Superman, Batman and Robin or Wonder Woman, but they can always call their SRO.”

Rich also went over goals of the SRO program and provided available information regarding funding for other SRO programs at area schools.

Two local examples of SRO funding are: 75 percent school system funding for one SRO provided by the Cairo Police Department for Grady County schools, and 75 percent school system funding for two SROs provided by the Thomas County Sheriff’s Office for Thomas County schools.

Rotary Club of Thomasville President Joe Brown spoke in support of the program.

“I support retaining the SRO program,” he said. “I hope that you can negotiate and resolve the funding issue. It would be a shame to lose this resource for our young people.”

“I am pleased with the outcome of the work session, where it was noted the SROs will continue in the schools until such time that the school system’s budget can accommodate participation for partial funding of the SROs,” Everett said Thursday.

The superintendent said she will make “a good faith effort” to include the city’s SRO funding requests in her budget proposals to the school board, but the system’s ability to reach those goals will depend on the budgets approved by the board.

“We will make our best effort based on stabilization of public school funding and our budget constraints,” she said. “If we can afford to and the budget will allow us to do it, we’re going to make our best effort to do so.”

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