Importance of school resource officers on campus safety
Madeline Murray
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) – School Resource Officers (SRO) play a vital role in maintaining safety on campus and while they say the first week went well, they do have some concerns.
Cassandra Reed, an SRO, said, “We do ask that any parents and anyone that comes onto our school campus, that they are patient, follow the laws, it’s 25 mile per hour in pretty much most areas, if it’s not down to 15.”
Traffic around school zones is their number one issue with parents dropping off and picking up their kids.
Not only do school resource officers keep school campuses safe, they also serve as mentors to the students.
“The School Resource Officers, each of them are assigned to a specific school, and their just, their main purpose is to provide safety and security to the school campus, but not only that their role as a guide, i guess like a counsellor, provide guidance to the young kids,” said Hayato Johnson, Public Information officer for the Yuma Police Department.
I asked SRO Reed what it means to her to be a protector of our schools.
“I do absolutely enjoy my job. I enjoy coming to work everyday, talking to our students and our staff, building those positive relationships,” said Reed.
She explained how important her role is in creating a positive environment for students.
Reed emphasizes the importance of SROs on campus by saying, “Oh my goodness, I think it’s super important to have SROs in the schools. We defiantly implement a positive role model and I think that kind if closes the gap between schools and the community.”
Another reminder from SROs is to always be visual around school campuses, especially during drop off and pick up times, as children can dart out from almost anywhere.