SRO Officers for 2003

Front Row: Sgt. Allen Wolf - Off Carlton Rodgers - Off. Joe Camp - Off. Ron McHenry
Back Row: Off. John Biagini - Off. Ron Hunt - Off. Robert Lacy - Off. Steve Jerrell

Wichita's School Resource Officer (SRO) program was implemented in the spring of 1997 as  part of the Wichita Police Department's focus on better serving the city through Community Oriented Policing. Specially trained officers were assigned to the six largest Wichita High Schools: East, Southeast, South, North, West, and Northwest. In the fall of 1999, six additional officers were assigned to Wichita Middle Schools.  By the fall semester of this year fourteen of Wichita's Middle Schools will have officers assigned to them full-time.

A School Resource Officer fills many different roles within his or her school:

• The SRO is a vital member of the school's administrative team, helping to solve problems within the school community.

• The SRO is an educational resource for students, teachers, administrators, and parents.

• The SRO provides students with a positive role model, and a balanced view of law enforcement.

• The SRO is a proactive law enforcement officer dealing with law related issues on campus.

When developing this program the Wichita Police Department adopted a "triad" approach. This concept has been widely accepted as the model for school based officers. The triad concept divides the SRO's responsibilities into three areas: Teacher, Counselor, and Law Enforcer. Wichita has expanded on this concept to included Mentoring as the central focus of everything the SRO does.

Teacher/Trainer

The SRO is available as a guest speaker or as a resource to nearly every classroom within the school.

• Government and Law - Search & Seizure, Criminal Law, Juvenile Law, Consumer Law etc.

• Math - Accident Investigation, Computer Crime

• Science - Forensics, DNA Evidence, Ballistics , Accident Investigation

• English - Professional Writing Skills

• Drivers Education - Mock Accidents, DUI Awareness, Defensive Driving

• Physical Education/Health - Personal Safety, Sexual Assault Awareness, Conflict Resolution, Domestic Violence Awareness

Counselor

The SRO is a resource for both faculty and students and provides informal counseling and/or advice. These officers have received extensive training regarding programs and services available to handle problems and conflicts. Getting the right kind of help to those that need it is one of the SRO's highest priorities .

Law Enforcer

Any law related issue that arises on campus is the SRO's responsibility.  In many ways his/her school is no different than any other patrol beat.  Whether it is child abuse, truancy, disorderly conduct, theft, or some type of assault, the SRO is there to handle it quickly and professionally.

As a Community Police Officer, the SRO is charged with proactively addressing the crimes that occur on campus, both through education and through special projects or programs. Every school is different, so each SRO must tailor his/her projects to both the problem and the school.

Mentor

Mentoring is the central focus of the program.  SROs have the opportunity to form lasting impressions on young people. To help students succeed, the SRO  provides guidance, tutoring, and coaching to students with special needs or problems.