York placing full-time resource officer at elementary school

Hickory Grove-Sharon Elementary School near York will soon have a full-time school resource officer.

York is one of 38 South Carolina school districts to receive funding from the S.C Department of Education for new school resource officers, according to a department news release.

The funding comes from a $2 million addition to the state’s 2018-19 budget. The money is split among the 38 school districts. Districts applied and were chosen for the grant based on need, the release states.

The funding is given directly to the law enforcement agency providing the school resource officer, said Ryan Brown, spokesperson with the S.C. Department of Education.

Tim Cooper, spokesperson for the York school district, said the district will use the funding to place a full-time resource officer at Hickory Grove-Sharon, which is located outside of city limits.

The officer will be provided by the York County Sheriff’s Office, Cooper said.

The grants are an effort by the education department to provide a school resource officer, or SRO, in every school by 2020, State Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman said in a statement.

“There is no issue more important than the safety and well being of our students and teachers,” Spearman said in the statement. “I appreciate the support of the General Assembly in recognizing this and taking a step in the right direction by funding new officers in those districts that have not been able to afford them.”

School districts, local police agencies and local governments generally have to fund school resource officers themselves.

“We would not be able to make it happen were funding not available through the state,” Cooper said.

Once the new officer is added, York will have four school resource officers in the district, three of whom are provided by the York City Police Department, Cooper said. School resource officers are based out of one school but are assigned multiple.

“This will improve student interaction with law enforcement,” Cooper said. “We get great results when our students let us know about issues. We appreciate the state department for making the grant available.”

More than sixty S.C. school districts applied for the funding, including Fort Mill and the Lancaster County School District, according to the education department.

Stepping up security

Student safety is a top priority for school districts across South Carolina following several school shootings nationwide, including the Feb. 14 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., that left 17 people dead.

York County school districts have taken steps in recent years to increase school security.

During the past five years, the Rock Hill school district has invested more than $8 million to improve school security. Fort Mill earlier this year added six new armed security guards in the schools. The Clover school district also added more security officers at the district’s seven elementary schools.

At the end of August, York sent a letter to parents announcing the new measures that will be followed at all campuses.

The statement, which also was posted to the district’s Facebook page, reads: “The safety of our students and staff remains an ongoing priority to us, and the Standard Response Protocol will help to ensure a rapid and coordinated response in the event of any school incident. This plan is used in many other schools in our local area as well as in schools across the nation and enables common, efficient communication between law enforcement, emergency personnel, and schools when responding to incidents, large or small.”

Cooper said the new protocol aligns the terminology used during emergency events at all schools, cutting down on confusion with school staff and local police.

“It helps us communicate more efficiently,” he said.

This story was originally published September 5, 2018 at 4:02 PM.