Read the story in the Savage Pacer before you pass judgment so quickly! The city of Savage is suggesting a partnership arrangement whereby the school districts pay one-third and the city pays two-thirds!

Let me ask this -- do you feel safe in your German Four class? Safety isn't something that can be seen as you walk around your school, rather it is something that is there like an invisible layer of protection. Or maybe you would prefer the type of protection you can see -- such as metal detectors at the doorways? Officer Klapperick and members of the Savage Police Department do more than you think. What you are seeing from a student's perspective is a very small part of the SRO role in your school.

During my first two years of high school at Henry Sibley High School we didn’t have a SRO on duty. The last two years I was there we did.

As Callie mentioned, as a student you don’t see a lot of need for an in-house officer. It can be intimidating and seem unnecessary, but I have to agree with Nancy, the SRO does a lot of things students don’t see.

I know Sibley’s SRO, Officer Weber, related to a lot of trouble makers on different levels than counselors and teachers could.

He didn’t put them in detention; he got to the source of their problems and issues.

He didn’t punish them; he educated them about the impacts their decisions could have on their future, if they continued down that path.

He wasn’t always there to “bust” them. He gave them perspective, insight and guidance. He helped them make better decisions.

He could give real life experience.

He could speak frankly with students about things that teachers and counselors don’t have time to talk about.

He was the eyes and ears of the hallways. He knew the family backgrounds of some of the troubled kids, so he knew why they were acting out.

If students saw things they didn’t like, many of them felt comfortable talking with him about it. He didn’t give grades, he helped people out. He talked with kids about rehab and where drug use and abuse could lead.

He was trustworthy to students who were scared, and scary to students who caused problems. Trouble makers may have disrespected teachers, but they always showed the SRO respect.

We had some gang activity when I was at school. On several occasions, Weber talked kids from neighboring high schools who came to start a huge fight down. If the violence started, the police were already there to document it. I never saw violence in the lunchroom when Weber was around. But it was frequent when he wasn’t there.

These things may not be big issues at PLHS yet, but as a community grows, so does the potential for problems. It is important to have the SRO in place before things get out of control. Prevention is always better than reaction.

I didn’t see nearly as much drug trafficking when Weber would have his K-9 in the school building and parking lot as we had before he was there.

A funding partnership between the school district and the city is important. If a school would rather have an officer on duty than metal detectors at the doorway, they should help pay for police presence.

On the other hand, it is a duty of the city to provide protection for students at school, so they should financially help the school provide security for students.

I wouldn’t want to see academic opportunities compromised for protection.

It is important to feel safe at school, but it is equally important to receive the best education possible. Securing the entrances, checking visitors at the doors and monitoring the hallways are all important safety measures. Having an on-duty officer reinforces these procedures.

I disagree with Blastomy’s statement about not needing police presence now. I think drugs and violence are big issues in schools. If the SRO deters one fight, keeps drugs out of the classrooms and provides insight into larger problems in the community to students and staff, the presence of a SRO is worthwhile. The SRO may not be necessary for security right now, but it is necessary for drug and violence education among the other things the SRO is responsible for doing.  

The SRO helps build a healthy relationship between students and police. Should a small lunchroom fight be charged as an assault? Probably not, but teachers shouldn’t be put in the position to break-up a fight either. Yes parents should parent, but there are a lot of students at PLHS, with a lot of different backgrounds, therefore as much as it is on parents to teach their kids, many things are out of their control when they send their child to a school of about 2,200 students.  

If teachers and pricipals were allowed to discpline kids, and correct parents, the way they did when I was in school, the problems wouldn't be to the point they're at today...hell, if parents would discpline their kids it'd be better. This entire society has fostered such a culture that lacks personal responsiblity and social norms it boggles the mind. Until that changes a cop in a school isn't going to stop anything.