Board holds off on assigning police officer to school
TOWN OF ULSTER, N.Y. » Town Board members for a second time have put off voting on assigning a police resource officer for Miller Middle School.
The delay was discussed during a meeting Thursday, with Supervisor James Quigley noting Kingston school district officials are reviewing conditions of the contract in response to a split in the community over having police used in schools.
“The town still has not received an answer from the school district on the ... arrangement for 20202021 school year,” he said.
Officials had been scheduled to vote on the $69,368.90 contract in June but delayed the tabled the issue as nationwide controversy grew over police involvement in the deaths through the use of force. The incidents appeared to be the direct result of racial insensitivity in situations where police had other options or were callous their actions.
There are competing petitions over use of police at Miller as well as Kingston city officers at Bailey Middle School and Kingston High School.
Rise Up Kingston is asking that the practice be ended and describes it as way to “criminalize” students while Kingston Action for Education contends police are needed for safety in light of mass killings of staff and students schools.
Ulster town Police Chief Kyle Berardi supports an evaluation that leads to better training for officers but considers the program a way to keep the community safe.
“I see the relationship that school resource officers build with these children,” he said. “In an ever changing society when we’re trying to increase the interaction between
the public and police that a first-hand ability for the kids to interact with an officer in a less threatening or intrusive manner.”
While there have been some concerns among parents with incidents involving off-campus situations between students and police who are also used as resource officers at the high school, the program has largely been credited with facilitating a sense of security in the buildings.
“We’ve accomplished ... 14 years of that interaction and that dialogue with the children,” Berardi said.
Berardi added that it is important to address situations such as the high school incidents to avoid having them repeated.
“There was obviously a breakdown there,” he said. “There was tension there. Where does the tension stem from? Is it something that we could have done better? Was it on the part of the student? ... It takes all interested parties to really sit down and evaluate where was the breakdown.”
Under the contract, services provided by the officers include:
Peer mediation for students to resolve conflicts; safety instruction for students and parents when dealing with issues such as sexual harassment, bicycle safety, school bus safety, substance abuse prevention, internet and computer safety, and bullying; conferences with school personnel to assist with crime prevention issues; being available for meetings with parent groups and district committees for discussions about school safety; and assisting school and district officials in developing plans and strategies to prevent or minimize dangerous situations in buildings and at district-sponsored events.
The contract prohibits the resource officer from taking any disciplinary action for student activity that violates school or district policy. It does allow the officer to respond to emergency situations and initiate law enforcement action when needed but recommends that district personnel be consulted in advance.