Simon Mehring: In the spring of 2023 I was elected to serve on the SASD Board of Education as the student representative. In this role I had many ambitious goals, and chief among them was to advocate for the creation of a School Resource Officer at SHS. I believed an SRO would make our school safer, increase communication with the Stoughton Police Department and truly support our school’s students and staff. However, two years later when I heard the district was starting to float the idea of an SRO my stance on the idea has evolved drastically.
SASD had an SRO from 2013-2021, and each year the #1 job of an SRO was to truancy citations for chronic tardiness. In an ideal educational environment an SRO would be capable of offering support for at-risk students in times of need, but I have serious concerns that an SRO would be capable of doing so at SHS.
SHS Principal Cassie Jemilio told BOE members that an SRO would offer mental health services and coordinate with school counselors to “de-escalate incidents” at the 1-6-25 BOE meeting. Students struggling with mental health is not new, in 2023 the CDC found that 2 in 10 (20%) students seriously considered attempting suicide and nearly 1 in 10 (9%) attempted suicide. This statistic should be alarming to all students, staff, and parents, yet no substantive action was taken at the federal state or local level. I do not believe the best way to address an alarming mental health crisis is through an armed police officer in our hallways.
I must admit there is one upside to an SRO: Apparent safety and increased communication. Many view the police as a symbol of protection. I do believe an SRO would ease the mind of many parents, however look beyond your own family. Will an SRO help students who are struggling with drug addiction? Will an SRO help students who have had poor experiences with law enforcement in the past?
This article would not be complete without acknowledging the timing of this proposal in relation to the Abundant Life school shooting in Madison in late 2024. This local tragedy truly cast a dark shadow over the greater Madison area, and like so many others I am deeply saddened by the horrific events and loss of life that day. It may be difficult to say but it is necessary to acknowledge that all research and data shows that SRO have a very slim likelihood of stopping an active shooter scenario.
If SASD chooses to move forward with reinstating an SRO it is imperative they work with the community and rethink the norm. An SRO of the past will not serve the needs of all students at SHS. I ask that SASD administration look past the “safest” option on the table, but if the district decides to implement an SRO and truly consider what is best for all students, substantial mental health training, adolescent educational experience, and being unarmed are the bare minimum for what may make an effective SRO at SHS.
Lily O’Hearn: As the current elected student representative on the SASD Board of Education, my own take on the current discussion around SROs for the 2025/26 school year are slightly different. While I have many hesitations, like others on the board I think that the current vision for what the Stoughton School Resource Officer could be are actually quite plausible. The vision for this SRO is different than the others that have come before it, and also from other school districts. SASD is the only school district in Dane County without an SRO, this leads me to believe that a lot of the successes other schools are having could be replicated in ours.
The SRO in this draft of a contract, is meant to be what it sounds like. A resource BEFORE an officer. Yes school safety and threats is a large part of this role, but as someone who would be in the schools every day there is so much more work that would be getting done in addition to that. De-escalating situations between students, teaching lessons on digital harassment and respect, and much more.
School safety is often the first thing many students, parents, and teachers think of when they hear the term SRO. Now I could find a statistic that says that SROs improve school safety, but anyone can find a study that agrees with that, or says differently. There is a statistic for every perspective, making it hard to distinguish between the facts and how they are presented.
While truancy citations are also a part of the role of an SRO, they are also usually attempting to find the barrier between the student and attending school, not just delivering the ticket. Truancy often isn’t just on the student, but also lots of different external circumstances.
Overall, I think that an SRO in this “trial” contract could be a potentially positive thing for not only SHS, but the Stoughton School District as a whole.
