Top 12 Qualities for a K-12 School Resource Officer

School Resource Officers (SROs) are law enforcement officers from local police departments assigned to schools to connect students with school resources. They handle all the school’s security needs while facilitating student access to all school’s resources.

Background and Qualifications Needed for SROs

Resource Officers are liaisons, connecting the school with external security and safety organizations.

Three or four decades ago, their job was simple: maintain a visible presence, look for minor crimes like vandalism and theft, and respond to isolated violence, drug, and gang activity related incidences.

Today, the security needs of an average K-12 school have evolved into needing to prevent mass shootings and bomb scares. As such, their role has evolved to investigating bomb threats, preventing abrupt incidences of violence, and watching out for “lone wolf” mass shooters.

School Resource Officers Need to Meet the Following Qualifications:

School Resource Officer Certification (over 40 hrs through MDE) or Bachelor’s degree in sociology or equivalent
- SRO’s are often trained by the National Association of School Resource Officers (NASRO)
Minimum of 2 years in any law enforcement field
Commissioned as a qualified law enforcement officer
Ability to work flawlessly with youth
A wide base of knowledge concerning social issues, criminal justice system, and youths
Knowledge of state, county, city, and federal laws
Ability to work effectively and tactfully with others
Knowledge of how courts work and how to present evidence during court proceedings
Effective written and oral communication

Annual Earning Potential for a School Resource Officer

The wage potential of an SRO depends on the state where they are working. Below are some resources to see the earning potential in various states across the US.

Zip Recruiter: What is the Average School Resource Officer Salary by State

Career Trend: How Much Money Does a School Resource Officer Make?

Salary Expert: School Resource Officer Salary

When Do Schools Typically Hire SROs?

Recruitment agencies and schools tend to hire School Resource Officers at the end of summer break, between late July and end of August. Some agencies tend to hire a bit early at the start of summer break.

To find out when summer break is for your state or district, check out this website: My School Holidays

Meanwhile, the academic year for K-12 schools in the US lasts for 180 days with Thanksgiving, Christmas, mid-winter, and spring breaks. K-12 schools often close in mid-June and commence at the start of the second week of August.

Common Recruiting Websites for Finding SRO Jobs:

ZipRecruiter – one of the largest web-based recruitment agencies in the United States, links over 20,000 recruits to employers annually.

Lucas Group – This is the third-largest recruitment agency in the United States

Robert Half – a highly reputable security personnel recruitment agency in the United States

Best Practices of a School Resource Officer

Typically, schools hire School Resource Officers on their own. Some SRO’s are regular police officers – a practice that is often objectionable by some parents and community leaders. However, the SRO is bound to adhere to the best practices of the profession regardless of their recruitment.

SROs should have a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the learning institution. The MOU draws a line between disciplinary issues that the school pursues and the role of the SRO: the student’s general security and safety.
SROs should receive specialized training even if they are already in law enforcement service. Officers should be aware of normal temper flares that characterize adolescent development. They also need to have a grasp on the best ways to address the issues experienced with students, particularly those with special needs

Dos and Don’ts for SROs

Dos

Mingle with students and create rapport
Ensure that security and safety installations are working properly
Ward off any safety threats
Connect with community, youth-service professionals and external security agencies regarding the school’s security
Have a good working relationship with the school’s teaching and non-teaching staff

Don’ts

Take disciplinary actions against students
Interfere in the school’s disciplinary apparatus
Target a student unfairly based on race, gender, religious affiliation or in any unlawful way
Dispense their firearms unnecessarily

3 Steps to Be A Successful School Resource Officer

Build a Professional Relationship with Staff

Staff cooperation is a necessity to complete your responsibilities.

School Resource Officers Need to Engage Students in Their Environments

Mixing with students helps you create rapport and win their trust, two factors that ease intense situations. The expectation you have for teenagers should be different from those you have for adults

Maintain strong LEO relationships

Besides students and school staff, the SRO should also maintain good working relationships with law enforcement officers outside the school

Things Districts Should Know About School Resource Officers

Sometimes, districts have a bigger say on policing decisions in schools under their authority and, there tend to be misunderstandings around the topics of hiring SROs and whether they should carry guns.

It is the duty of relevant authorities to know who they’re hiring as their SRO
SRO should be trained to meet the school’s standards and expectations
The training should entail specific content that has been vetted to be relevant
An MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) should be signed, outlining the SRO’s specific duties
Accountability tools such as police body cameras should be available

Related Article: School Security: A Human Layer

Top 12 Qualities of a School Resource Officer

1. Culturally and Socially Sensitive

K-12 schools, like any other school in the US, consisting of students from different cultures and social backgrounds. School Resource Officers should understand a variety of cultural and social backgrounds. This helps them avoid responding to issues in a way that could be interpreted as racially or culturally insensitive

Recently, this has become one of the core qualities the SRO should possess, as concerns rise over racial profiling in community policing.

2. School Resource Officers Need to Possess A Positive Attitude

They should have a positive attitude towards the school community and their own career.

Most School Resource Officers are derived from local police departments while others have experience in law enforcement from elsewhere. One thing unites all of them: many people they meet are illegally peddling drugs or committing a homicide. This can cloud their judgments of everyone else.

Also, law enforcers seldom receive the credit they deserve. Once they leave service, nobody remembers they were there. For this reason, some of them don’t see the point of committing themselves to the profession with the required zeal. If a law enforcement officer holds these thoughts for a long time, they’re less likely to be willing to make a difference or even enjoy their responsibilities.

It becomes hard to be a disciplined enforcer if you don’t have the right attitude. Schools want to work with an SRO who loves their job and who is willing to do anything to keep school staff and students safe.

3. Mingle with and Engage Pre-Teens and Teens

The SRO in K-12 school needs to be able to effortlessly interact with pre-teens and teens and engage them in safety.

Students are often more willing to share with an SRO than with a teacher. Thus, an SRO becomes the best link between students and school management. However, that’s only possible if the SRO is accommodating to young people.

Pre-teens, like anyone else, don’t want to approach an intimidating person. An SRO who gets along with pre-teens and the school’s personnel is likely to meet their responsibilities better than one with no rapport at all.

Smiling friendly police officer providing security on school campus.

4. School Resource Officers Need to Have the Ability to Work Independently

The SRO should be able to perform their duties independently and without supervision. Partly because School Resource Officers often don’t have an assistant to back them up. And partly because an independent SRO is more efficient.

A typical K-12 school would employ one SRO to oversee the security needs of the entire institution. When they work independently, they respond faster to emergency situations because they know exactly what to do and don’t need to take orders from anyone.

Law enforcement and outside pressure don’t mix well. The SRO who can perform their duties without being pressured is a valuable resource to the school.

5. Excellent Interpersonal Communication Skills

School Resource Officers must possess interpersonal skills for daily interaction with school personnel and students. Communication skills which include the ability to listen and speak effectively are needed. The SRO should possess non-verbal communication skills and even be able to use American Sign Language. Additionally, they also need to be able to control their emotions in any situation.

There are several reasons why recruitment agencies put more emphasis on communication and interpersonal skills when hiring School Resource Officers. Firstly, a person with this quality is more likely to be emotionally intelligent. Secondly, people with these skills tend to be good in mediation and conflict resolution as well as influencing and persuading others.

6. Understand Child Psychology and Development

This is one of the most important qualities a K-12 school SRO should possess. Pre-teens are children according to the law and from a psychological perspective. This means that they don’t reason like adults. Following this rationale, a school will only want to hire an SRO who understands children and will only approach students as children, not adults.

Child psychology and development studies teach children’s development including physical, social-emotional, cognitive, and psychological milestones. The SRO with certification in this area can be of great value to a K-12 school.

7. Knowledge of School Safety Technologies and Implementation

The increasing confrontation between students and law enforcement officials and the prevalence of mass shootings have pushed schools to implement rigid security and safety policies.

Part of these reforms is the installation of security systems that take advantage of modern technology. Such systems include social media watchers, internet safe kits, anonymous alerts, entry control equipment, visitor management systems, X-Ray machines and metal detectors, panic buttons, surveillance cameras, etc.

The SRO should be knowledgeable of these technologies including their implementation and use. An SRO with certification in policing technologies or the equivalent is skilled enough to use most security safety technologies installed in schools.

High school administrators discussing something after class

8. Willingness to Work with Parents, Community, and Youth-Serving Professionals

The SRO should be willing to work with the community to ensure students’ security and safety.

In the event of a security emergency, the SRO will be the first person to contact parents and give them situational updates. During a safety breach, community members and parents will talk to the SRO first. For these reasons, the school would want to hire an SRO who is ready to work with all interested stakeholders regarding the student’s safety.

At the same time, the SRO is expected to be able to work with an array of pre-teen and youth-serving professionals on a range of issues regarding the safety and wellbeing of students.

These youth-serving professionals can be

community leaders dedicated to such issues as drug abuse and gang activity
councilors dedicated to providing advice
teen-health professionals
etc.

School Resource Officers can provide these professionals with a lot of useful information that other school employees wouldn’t be aware of. Because SRO’s tend to be closer to students.

9. Knowledge of K-12 School-Based Legal Issues

With the prevalence of “banned” items entering schools, it is important to understand what the law says concerning searching students and seizing their property.

School personnel, including SRO’s, need only establish reasonable suspicion to search and seize items, instead of the probable cause standards used by police officers. By reasonable suspicion, the search need must be reasonable both in scope and at inception.

Other than being privy to the legal framework about the relationship between the students and the school personnel, the SRO should also be aware of legal and security challenges facing K-12 schools today.

10. School Resource Officer’s Are Counselors When Needed

After being hired, SRO’s need to familiarize themselves with the school and identify community resources that are available to them and the students.

When an issue occurs in the community that affects the students, the SRO officer is a valuable resource to the school personal by helping them protect the students. They should also be knowledgeable in child protective services, technologies used by the community and the school, and mental health services.

11. An Enforcer

While in the K-12 school, the SRO handles the safety of the school staff and students within the boundaries of the school. They also serve as liaisons between the school and external security establishments such as police departments and the community.

SROs need to be informed regarding law enforcement matters concerning the school personnel and students.

They should be able to handle many responsibilities besides receiving and responding to calls for service from the school’s management. These include coordinating externally sourced responses from other security personnel. Contacting emergency services in the event of injuries or breach of safety.

12. School Resource Officers are also Educators

In many states across the US, the SRO occasionally teaches both teachers and students about policing. Therefore, having certifications in the related public safety, counseling, and policing studies is an added advantage.

Teaching topics can include:

policing as a profession
motor vehicle safety
DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) topics and programs
general public safety.

The SRO who possesses the qualities of an educator is a valuable resource for a school. They are able to connect with the students in the classroom the same way teachers do while simultaneously enforcing the law.

Other Private School and Charter School Safety Personnel

School first aid coordinators – they attend to students when they require urgent medical attention.

School nurse – they provide comprehensive medical services to students

Health and security volunteers – individuals who complement the responsibilities of School Resource Officers, school nurses, school first aid coordinators, and safety personnel free of charge.

Frequently Asked Questions About School Resource Officers

Q: Who is responsible for hiring SROs?

A: In some states, the school itself may choose to hire the SRO based on the criteria set by management. The local police department can provide its own officers to take roles if necessary. Any school can choose to outsource the recruitment responsibilities of a recruitment agency of choice.

Q: Do SROs need to be certified?

A: No, but they need to be trained. In most contexts, NASPRO (National Association of School Resource Officers) would take the training responsibilities as requested by the school or local police department.

Certifications are given for other purposes and don’t necessarily qualify as a show of qualification. Such purposes include communicating the expiration date, complying with renewal requirements, and as a revocation procedure.

Q: Are SROs always armed?

A: Yes. The SRO is not a security guard but rather, a commissioned law enforcement officer who is allowed by the law to use their firearms when necessary. But that’s not always the case. Some jurisdictions with stringent gun laws restrict School Resource Officers from carrying firearms when in schools.

Q: How many SROs could there be in the United States?

A: No one really knows the exact number of School Resource Officers in the United States. This is partly because there is no requirement for SROs to register with a national database. Additionally, local police departments do not report the number of their officers deployed in schools to serve as SROs.

Q: What evidence shows that SROs are valuable?

A: Research on SROs in the United States is scanty. However, Researchers at Carleton University in Canada conducted a study spanning 2 years on the Canadian SRO program. They released a report in 2018 indicating that, for every $1.00 invested in the program by the government brought, there is $11.10 in returns. The report also highlights several benefits of the program including:

an increased feeling of security among the school personnel and students
minimization and prevention of destruction of school property,
prevention of student deaths and injuries
increased chances that students would report criminal behavior to the authority
drop in emergency calls made by schools.

Q: Do SROs contribute to the dreaded school-to-prison incarceration pipeline?

A: No. School Resource Officers are carefully selected and follow the best practices as defined by NASRO. The role of the SRO is limited to ensuring the security and safety of the students. All disciplinary issues are handled by the school’s management.

Q: How do SROs respond to a mass shooter?

A: NASPRO trains School Resource Officers to charge directly at the shooter and quickly neutralize them to prevent injuries and loss of life.

Q: What’s the maximum number of SROs a K-12 school should have at a given time?

A: According to the recommendations given by NASRO, one carefully selected and trained SRO is enough to provide security for any school. There have been suggestions to allocate 1 SRO for every 1000 students. Schools are advised by NASRO to consider their location, climate, size of their campus, and size of both teaching and non-teaching staff when selecting an SRO.

Q: Who qualifies to be SRO?

A: Contrary to common belief, the SRO does not need to be a law enforcement officer in practice. However, experience in law enforcement is considered to be an added advantage. K-12 schools tend to put more emphasis on the ability of the SRO to connect with teens. Some schools allow volunteers to take over security responsibilities.

Impressive Safety Tools Parents and Teachers Should Have

Pikmykid

As the name suggests, this platform connects teachers and parents regarding the care of children after the learning session has been dismissed. It is an excellent platform to ensure that your child is in safe hands immediately after school.

Kidio- Panic Button

Instead of the old fashioned emergency button under the desk or on the wall, this panic button is designed in such a way that it can be available to every staff member to press immediately when an emergency occurs.

Kidio- Anonymous Tipline

You can train your child to look for signs of danger such as abnormal behavior in the surroundings and send an anonymous alert. It can be a useful tool if there is a fear of kidnapping or frequent bullying.

In Conclusion

The School Resources Officer has two core responsibilities:

facilitating access to resources by students
ensuring that the safety and security of the students are safeguarded.

Although most SROs are sourced from the local police department, the K-12 school can choose to outsource the recruitment task to a recruitment agency.

NASRO expects SROs to adhere to the best practices of their profession.

avoiding interfering in the disciplinary apparatus of the K-12 school,
avoiding taking disciplinary actions against the students,
refraining from unfair profiling based on factors that would render it illegal.

School Resource Officers should have a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the learning institution. This clarifies their specific roles and draws a line between routine discipline issues, which should be pursued by the teachers, and the general safety and security of the students, the actual role of the SRO.