Lincoln Police School Resource Officer Tom Stumbo checks a door and tries to see inside the Media Center during a recent security exercise at Lincoln East High School.
Nebraskans appear to be unified on the need to improve school security, in light of horrific mass shootings. When discussing the best means to do so, however, stark differences arise.
And both camps present well-intended points. One side wants to make schools harder targets for would-be killers by installing metal detectors and arming teachers, while the other believes additional mental health resources and programming can head this crisis off at the pass.
School resource officers, or SROs, are often suggested to bridge the gap, providing armed security while also adding a positive role model for students. But studies show that increasing police presence in schools can have unintended, negative consequences if schools deploy officers in the wrong manner.
That’s why legislation mandating state education officials to create guidelines for SROs while also requiring officers and school administrators alike to undergo training represents a positive proposal as more schools add SROs.
The only law enforcement agency to testify on this bill, the Omaha Police Department, favored it, as did a variety of education and social organizations. Coupled with training, clearly and uniformly defining the role of SROs should help to curb the disparities seen both in Nebraska and nationwide – and demonstrated clearly by viral videos that display seemingly excessive force for minor offenses.
In December, a American Civil Liberties Union study found that students of color and those with disabilities make up a disproportionate number referred to the criminal justice system. Only two of the 18 law enforcement agencies it surveyed required a parent to be present when youth were questioned, and none of the 19 school districts had policies advising students of their rights during questioning.
Lincoln Public Schools reported some of Nebraska’s greatest disparities. Though only a third of its students are of color, 70 percent of youth referred to police were members of this group. District officials have pledged to reverse this trend, as they should.
With six new SROs added this year to the 12 LPS middle schools under an interlocal agreement, Lincoln reflects both the community’s desire to add officers and the need for training that focuses on school-based law enforcement.
Lincoln Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks’ bill, LB390, originally proposes 40 hours of training for officers and 20 for administrators; the Legislature’s Judiciary Committee suggested amending it to be 20 for each. Regardless, the Journal Star editorial board would like to see continuing education required to ensure both parties are as well informed as possible now and in the future.
To be abundantly clear, schools should not use officers to address low-level misconduct that is best covered under existing disciplinary guidelines. The last thing we need is to funnel more young people into our already overtaxed judicial system for insignificant offenses.
