Board OKs having officer at each campus

PEA RIDGE — Next year, there will be a school resource officer on each campus of the Pea Ridge School District.

Meeting in regular session Feb. 13, School Board members approved funding two additional school resource officers, bringing the total number of such officers to five.

The school resource officers are employees of the Police Department who are contracted with the School District; their salary during the school year is paid by the district.

“One of the things I hear from the community is that they would like to see an SRO at each campus,” Superintendent Keith Martin said.

Martin told members of the board that the Arkansas School Safety Commission issued a final report in October that included recommendations for school districts emphasizing the importance of a comprehensive school safety plan. That plan includes the recommendation that every campus should have an “armed presence” when staff and children are attending class or a major extracurricular activity and that “ideally that armed presence be a school resource officer.”

Martin requested that the number of school resource officers be increased from three to five for the 20232024 school year. Martin also recommended that one of the five be contracted for 12 months. He said the additional cost would be $275,000. The Pea Ridge School District is eligible for $183,025 from a school safety grant, which must be used to aid implementation of the recommendation from the School Safety Commission and provide a safe school environment for students and staff.

He said there are certified safety officers hired by some districts. Those officers have 60 hours of training.

“I just feel the SRO is a better option for us than a certified safety officer,” Martin said.

“The thing you get with a security guard is a gun and a person,” said Lt. Rich Fordham, who oversees the school resource officers program for the Police Department.

He explained that school resource officers are employees of the Police Department and certified safety officers are employees of the district.

“We have constant training, firearms training, equipment we bring to the table. We just bought tactical shields, helmets, breaching tools, and we have the certifications of knowing how to use them,” Fordham said. “Crimes do happen in the schools. SROs respond. A security guard can’t investigate a crime.

“We are fortunate in this city — we have great support in our community. We are not struggling hiring police officers,” Fordham said.

The police officers and school resource officers participate in active shooter training yearly in the schools, he said.

“I think we’re really prepared. This would be extremely beneficial for the schools and community,” Fordham said.

Kevin Ramey, assistant superintendent, said the school resource officers have specialized training above that of patrol officers.

“We have fantastic relationships. This seems to be the best fit for our School District and keeps us the safest,” he said.

Board member Sarah Saragusa asked whether the district could afford the additional cost.

“We can afford it,” Martin said. “This is one of the benefits of being a growing school district — you have the opportunity to add programs. If you ask the average parent, they want an armed presence on each campus.”

“One of the things I hear from the community is that they would like to see an SRO at each campus.”

Keith Martin, Pea Ridge superintendent