Tim Malone provides a positive law enforcement presence in FM schools
Tim Malone was born in Montana, but moved to Colorado at a very young age, so Fort Morgan has always been home to him. From Kindergarten to senior year, Malone attended schools in the Morgan County School District Re-3. As a high school student, he discovered that he wanted to work in law enforcement.
His good friend Dave Martin, who is now the Morgan County Sheriff, worked in law enforcement back then. When Malone saw the interesting work Martin was doing, he wanted to try out that line of work, as well.
Malone followed his hunch and is currently in his 30th year with the Fort Morgan Police Department. For the past 16 years, though, he has been a School Resource Officer (SRO).
Currently, he is the SRO at his middle school alma mater of Fort Morgan Middle School. He is also assigned to Sherman Early Childhood Center and the four elementary schools: Baker, Columbine, Green Acres, Pioneer.
While he may not have paid the best attention in his own middle school classes, he joked that he is learning a lot now when he sits in on classes. As an SRO, Malone will soon be teaching some classes of his own. He recently attended a two-week training to learn more about the Drug Abuse Resistance Education ( D.A.R.E.) program and its curriculum.
Beginning in the upcoming 2022-23 school year, Malone will be teaching students about the dangers of drugs, alcohol and vaping. The class will also specifically address opioid abuse prevention, teen suicide and internet and social media safety. Malone plans to make sure the class is very interactive with hands-on activities and role playing to keep students’ attention. His goal for next year is to introduce every single fifth grader in the district to the D.A.R.E. program, providing them with valuable life skills and guidance on how to handle things like peer pressure.
While Malone greatly understands the importance of educating students about topics discussed in the D.A.R.E. program, he also understands that it is just as important to be a present and positive figure in the children’s lives.
“I like working in the schools because I really believe that there needs to be a positive connection between today’s youth and law enforcement. A lot of these kids see negative things in the news. It’s very important to just start young with these kids and be a positive influence in their life so they don’t believe that the police are all bad. It’s important for all law enforcement officers, whether you’re an SRO or a regular patrol (officer), to have a good positive interaction with kids,” he said.
Malone begins a typical day by helping control traffic at the FMMS campus. He likes to be the first person to say “good morning” and welcome students into school with a smile. Throughout the day, he wanders around the middle school with the goal of being a positive presence. He greets students in the hallways during class changes, helps serve lunch nearly every day and is always ready to give a pep talk or have a tough conversation.
“I also kind of mentor and counsel some kids at the middle school. Maybe they’re struggling. Maybe their home life isn’t what it should be… I do a lot of counseling-type short conversations. If (they) ever need anything, I’m here. The door is always open. I’m here for them. I work for them,” said Malone.
On the elementary school level, he tries to visit each of the district’s five schools once a week. Malone will usually drop in in the morning or afternoons to greet the students at the beginning or end of their school day. But he also stops by for lunch sometimes, just to sit with the students, talk about life and answer all the questions about what it’s like to be a police officer. He also takes part in the schools’ reading programs, where he will occasionally be a guest reader.
Outside of school hours, he attends athletic events and things like school dances. He stays involved in the community and often holds staff trainings for district employees and community talks for local organizations like the Rotary Club or the Sunrise Optimist Club. Malone likes to share what he’s learned in his three decades of law enforcement with whomever he can help inform.
During the summers, Malone helps run Lawn Enforcement, a part-time lawn service business and mentorship/service program for middle schoolers. When he is not working as an SRO or dedicating his time to Fort Morgan students, he likes to go camping in the mountains with his wife, spend time with his own children and work on automobile restorations.