The purpose of this study is to research how School Resource Officers (SROs) are viewed by the teachers and principals they work with in relation to how they handle incidents of school violence. It will focus on selected metro Atlanta city and county high schools. The issue of school violence, especially active shooter situations continue to plague the public, shareholders, students, and law enforcement (Wolfe, Chrusciel, Rojek, Hansen, & Kaminski, 2017). Violence in schools is not a new phenomenon of course. Around the mid 1980’s, this country saw a huge spike in youth violence that spilled over into school systems (Jennings, Khey, Maskaly, & Donner, 2011). This issue has led to school officials seeking the best possible prevention methods against school violence, including the presence of police officers in schools, better known as School Resource Officers (SROs), or School Police Officers.
The implementation of police officers being utilized in schools first came about in the 1950’s. Their presence was initially thought of as a definitive way to decrease school violence (Ryan, Katsiyannis, Counts, & Shellnut, 2018). As times changed, not only has the role of these officers changed, but what has also changed is how important stakeholders in the schools, like teachers and principals, view them. Based on past studies, it is now the belief of many students that the presence of police officers in schools increase acts of school violence (Theriot, 2013). There is a gap in the literature, however, that focuses on how teachers and administrators feel about the presence of law enforcement in schools. Various sources and databases have been used to find related research on this topic. Databases used in this literature review include ProQuest Criminal Justice, PsycInfo, EBSCO, and PsycARTICLES. The literature review will be divided into three main themes. The first section will cover what methods SROs are using to handle school violence daily, and their specific roles and responsibilities. The second section will cover what teachers and administrators think about not only the presence of SROs in the school, but if that presence is effective, specifically as to how the SROs are handling incidents of school violence. The third section will cover what, if any, actions that need to occur in order to ensure that teachers and administrators are cohesive in nature with the SROs in the schools where they work together.
Duties and Responsibilities
For the past twenty years, schools have implemented the use of SROs to curb school violence (Jennings et al., 2011). According to Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics (LEMAS), over half of police departments have sworn officers assigned to schools, and over one third of Sheriff Deputies (Brown, 2006). Their roles in the school, however, go above and beyond law enforcement duties. They take on the roles of counselors, mentors, and instructors. As it relates to reducing crime using SROs, there are mixed results (Jennings et al., 2011). Amid a lot of high-profile school shootings, the SRO program has been placed under a microscope. The shooting in Parkland, Florida at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School is a good representation of how everyone began to look at the duties of SROs in schools (Chuck, Johnson, & Siemaszko, 2018). SROs are expected to not only act in the face of violence, but also interact with students daily. Despite all the training they receive from a law enforcement perspective, they may still be insufficient in providing effective school safety (Glenn, Taylor, Chesterton, Williams, & Moavenzodeh, 2019). The argument is, since they are trained in a law enforcement capacity, they may not be the best individuals to handle menial behavioral problems that students tend to exhibit (Fisher and Hennessy, 2015). There is documentation that shows an inconsistency in how SROs are utilized, and what is expected of them as it relates to school discipline (Barnes, 2006; Na and Gottfredson, 2013).
Teachers and Administrators Interactions with SROs
Not enough research has been done on how key stakeholders like teachers and administrators must interact with SROs to perceive their usefulness (Wolfe, et al., 2017). There has only been a miniscule amount of studies that focus on the efficacy of SROs, and most of those focus on the feelings of students (Johnson, 1999; Travis & Coon, 2005; Trump, 2001). In order to ensure the success of the SRO program in a school, administrators and SROs must work together. If the relationship between key stakeholders in the school and the SRO become strained, then the effectiveness of the SROs themselves will be undermined. Therefore, a level of trust and cooperation between teachers, administrators, and the SRO is a must (Sunshine & Tyler, 2003, Tyler & Huo, 2002). The most challenging issues facing the SRO program is a lack of coordination with school administrators (Eisenberg, 2018).
Bridging the gap
It is known that there is a fundamental difference between a law enforcement culture, and an educational culture (Finn & McDevitt, 2005). This can be the number one reason why there may be a disconnection between SROs, teachers, and school administrators. Each entity has been trained to view different situations in different ways. Police are trained to view things tactically. Teachers may view situations more scientifically while administrators must remain in an administrative role and focus on policy. In many school systems, the SROs, teachers and administrators have different structures and training, which may provide contrasting views on how to handle conflict (Eisenberg, 2018). The role of the SRO needs to be explicitly explained to administrators and teachers. If everyone understands their respective responsibilities, they can collaborate in appropriate ways to promote a safer school environment (Eisenberg, 2018).
Summary
History has shown us that violence, whether in schools or in society will always be present. The issue of violence in schools may be improved upon with certain safety measures in place but will never totally go away. The implementation of Law Enforcement Officers in schools known as School Resource Officers has come with its share of controversy. Whether they combat violence in schools has yet to be proven. There is limited research on what teachers and administrators think about SROs who they must work closely with daily. There needs to be a clear definition of the roles and responsibilities of SROs. There also needs to be an implementation of duel training between the SROs and teachers and principals. If the three entities have a clear understanding of each other’s roles, they can come together and provide a safer environment for the schools they serve.
