In Alabama, a non-partisan research institute is calling for specialized and fully funded training for all school resource officers in the state. Its Report, “Hall Monitors with Handcuffs,” found that arrests, referrals to the juvenile justice system, and school climate are largely dependent on the quality of the training school officials and law enforcement officers receive.
In Indiana, the Secured School Safety Grant program has approved more than $19 million in matching state grant funds, marking the largest ever single-year investment in safety initiatives at Hoosier schools. Every school that applied for fiscal year 2020 funds received notification that their top priority requests were fully funded for all eligible items. With the matching funds required by schools, more than $35 million will be invested in school safety this year in Indiana.
In Indiana, the Edinburgh Community Schools are turning to the community and public fundraising events to help raise the money needed to hire the district’s first school resource officer. The school corporation recently received word that they had secured $25,000 in Indiana Secured School Safety Grant funding. Conditions of the grant require the school district to provide a 50% match of the funding.
In Virginia, police officers in Newport News are implementing an Adopt-a-School program to create positive relationships with the students. Officers and some none-sworn staff will be assigned to each elementary school to help mentor the students.