The Manhattan-Ogden School Board held a conversation Wednesday about the role of school resource officers (SRO’s) and the potential for adding officers at each of the two middle schools.
Riley County Police Department officials including Director Brian Peete, Captain Greg Steere and resource officer Sonia Gregoire, joined in the conversation. Director Peete noted one of the most important jobs SROs have is building relationships in the schools.
RCPD currently employs two resource officers, both at Manhattan High School. Board members have expressed interest in two more officers to be placed at Anthony and Eisenhower Middle Schools. Director Peete says the department is open to finding ways to do it, but notes budgetary and staffing concerns make that a challenge in the short term.
Gregoire works as an SRO as Manhattan High School. She noted she has great relationships with many in the district, including both at MHS and other school buildings.
RCPD has included in its multi-year strategic plan to add SROs to its payroll and Peete says he believes the Law Board would support it.
Peete serves on the board of directors for CIT International, a community partnership of law enforcement, mental health and addiction professionals, individuals who live with mental illness and/or addiction disorders, their families, and other partners to improve community responses to mental health crises. CIT stands for Crisis Intervention Team. He explains some of the training materials that group is looking at to improve responses to violence, especially in schools.
Calls for service to USD 383 schools in the 2022-2023 school year, totaled 310 to the MHS West campus, of which 259 were officer-initiated. MHS East had 93 calls for service, though that building will no longer be utilized for MHS in the fall. Eisenhower Middle School had 89 calls for service last year, while Anthony Middle School had 84 calls.
In other business Wednesday night, the board gave final approval in principle to a memorandum of understanding with Common Table to utilize space for community meals at the former MHS East Campus. The MOU will allow Common Table to seek additional grant funding for its program.
The board also approved adding a girls wrestling program at both middle schools for the upcoming school year. The Centennial League is planning on a season to begin next January, to run into February. The district says around 100 girls at both middle schools expressed interest in a girls wrestling program.
