Mission Statement:
The mission of the Phoenix Police Department School Resource Program is to create and sustain a safe school environment where students can focus and learn to become productive members in our society.

School Resource Officers will lead by example and promote a positive image of law enforcement to our youth.

School Resource Officers will establish committed partnerships with teachers, parents and school staff.

School Resource Officers will mentor, guide and protect their respective students through a wide array of services and programs that provide hopefulness and sanctuary for future generations.

History:

The School Resource Officer Program originated in 1983 through the use of a federally funded grant. This grant allowed two elementary school districts, Creighton School District and Isaac School District, located within the City of Phoenix to have an officer assigned exclusively to their schools to investigate reports of child abuse and enforce the State of Arizona Truancy Laws. The SRO Program was assigned within the Community Relations Bureau.

During the three- year period of the grant, the truancy rate at the participating schools was reduced by 73 percent. The number of child abuse/neglect reports increased by an overwhelming 187 percent. With the officers present on campus, criminal acts were immediately investigated with arrests and referrals made when appropriate. Furthermore, it is presumed that the very presence of the officers on campus prevented many criminal acts.

The grant expired in 1986 and both originating school districts elected to maintain the program for the next school year. Both districts entered into contractual agreements with the City of Phoenix that required each to reimburse the city for 75 percent of each officer's yearly salary (including benefits) in exchange for assigning officers to a particular school(s) during the nine- month school year. The remaining 25 percent was paid by the city.

Today the School Resource Officer Program has grown to include 95 officers and 11 sergeants serving 23 school districts.

In 1997, in an effort to meet the unique needs of each school district, make the police department more responsive to the schools, and enhance the relationship between the SRO's and regular patrol officers, the School Resource Officers were decentralized from the Community Relations Bureau to the Patrol Division.

Duties:

Traditionally the role of the SRO has been to enforce Truancy Laws, investigate child abuse/neglect crimes, investigate crimes in and around school campuses, and be a visible sign of authority on campuses. Today, the SRO still performs these roles but with the advent of Community Based Policing, requirements imposed by grants, and an increase in school related violence the role of the SRO has become a unique one.

SROs participate in many other programs that require devotion, commitment and the desire to help today's youth such as coaching youth sports at assigned schools or Mentoring Programs such as Wake-up and Junior Achievement to name a few.

Listed here are a number of specific job duties required of a SRO:

• Establish and maintain a professional relationship with the school officials
• Investigate all reported child abuse incidents within the assigned schools
• Investigate no less than 95% of all reported truancies within the assigned schools
• Provide appropriate police/enforcement service at each of the assigned schools
• Ensure coverage of assigned schools when attending meetings, training, or taking leave
• When appropriate, refer students and their parents to social service agencies
• Thoroughly investigate and document crime, both reported and observed, while accurately completing all types of departmental reports and forms
• Utilize the Family Investigations Bureau as a resource when conducting abuse/neglect and all sex-related offenses
• Provide instruction in Law Related Education (LRE)

Method of Payment:

Contracts (intergovernmental agreements with school districts) are prepared by the departments SRO Coordinator once the Request for Council Action (RCA) and City Council Report (CCR) are approved by the City Council.

Method of payment for the use of School Resource Officers remains the same. Districts reimburse the city for 75 percent of each officer's yearly salary (including benefits) and the city pays the remaining 25 percent. However, the districts and the city are able to pay their share of the officer's salary partially if not entirely by the use of federal and state grants.

Teams:

Currently there are 11 Probation Officers and 4 City of Phoenix Social Workers assigned to 11 different schools in the City of Phoenix. Together, along with the SROs, they make up the Safe Schools team that will provide accountability-based programming to protect students and school personnel from drug, gang, and youth violence.

Teams should also include the school administrators, clerks, nurses, and school psychologist.

This team concept encourages SROs that do not have a Probation Officer or Social Worker on campus to work as a team with their respective school administrators, clerks, nurses, and school psychologist.

Training:

All SROs attend 40 hour Basic School Resource Officer Training. The training covered areas in school-based law enforcement, violence prevention, security and safety, and classroom instruction.

In an effort to aid SROs with classroom instruction and presenting law related education SROs attend General Instructor School that is arranged by the City of Phoenix Police Department.

Many of the SROs have received Bike Training that has allowed them to utilize both a department authorized bicycle and related uniform to patrol their school campus. Districts overwhelmingly supported this concept as being more accessible to the students and in many cases purchased the bicycle and related equipment.

Prevention, Intervention, and Response Planning is a big part of today's SROs daily safeschool planning. According to a report on School Associated Violent Deaths completed by the National School Safety Center for the period covering 1992 to present, 317 violent deaths occurred. 229 of these occurred on campus. 88 occurred off or near the school campus. Majority of these incidents did not make the news as did incidents in West Paducah Kentucky (Heath High School), Jonesboro Arkansas (Westside Middle School), Littleton Colorado (Columbine High School), and most recently in Santee California (Santana High School), and El Cajon California.

SROs and the Community:

School place violence remains a concern for school districts and their communities across the country. Recent incidents on school campuses across the country have proven the need for school administrators and police officers to be prepared to respond to a school campus crisis. The SRO program will continue to provide training to all SROs so that they may be prepared to handle any emergency crisis that may occur on school campuses.

Law Related Education has become a big part of the SROs daily duties. Since its inception into the program SROs have been able to reach students in such a direct and positive way that was unheard of years ago - classroom instruction. The program will continue to provide training that will help SROs in providing LRE that will help students in becoming successful law - abiding citizens.

School Resource Officers will continue to provide law enforcement services on assigned school campuses, while striving to work together with the school staff and community in harboring safe and crime free campuses.

For more information about the Phoenix Police Departments School Resource Officer Program please contact the Phoenix Police Departments Community and Patrol Services Bureau at (602) 262-7331.