(2/2) Fairfield Area School District officially voted to hire a School Safety Officer during their January 28 School Board meeting. This topic has been up for discussion since last summer, when the Board voted to allocate $57,000 within the school’s budget, with the intention to hire a Safety, Security and Loss Prevention Specialist (SSLPS) at the beginning of the school year. Now, eight
months later, the Board is ready to begin the process of hiring this position.
The SSLPS will be responsible for everything related to safety and prevention within the school district. The job description includes many duties such as: "the review, development, implementation and overseeing of programs, policies and procedures designed to provide a safe and secure environment for students, teachers, staff, parents, and visitors; the development of school safety and
security assessments and administration of grants; and creating a comprehensive school safety program. These duties will all be carried out through proactive identification of hazards and exposures, and prompt mitigation of those exposures, while simultaneously providing a consistent physical presence to serve as a deterrent for unsafe behavior and as a confidant for the school community at
large. This will include, but is not specifically limited to working with local law enforcement and emergency services agencies, district personnel, students, families and community groups."
"We need to do what’s best for our children," was a message shared by many of the School Board members during the January 14 School Board meeting. However, some felt as though hiring this position now, right before budget time, was an unwise decision. The District’s Business Manager, Caroline Royer, mentioned that a lot of the school’s curriculum needs to be updated, which can be costly, and
perhaps the Board should wait to see the budget before any decision is made. However, as mentioned by other members, funds are already available for this position since the district already budgeted for an SSLPS last June.
Several residents in attendance during the January 28 meeting showed support for hiring a SSLPS for the district. However, others noted a nervous feeling about employing an officer that would carry a gun while on duty. The Board assured the residents that this topic was discussed in length and experts were consulted; the officer that would be hired would be a trained expert, and his/her weapon
would be concealed at all times.
This position will be contracted with G-Force Investigations, a local security company that employs professionals for businesses and schools across many local counties in the state. This position will be hired at a flat salary rate, with no benefits included, and the contract will be for a year and a half. At the end of this time period, the Board may evaluate services provided and decide at
that time to contract for a longer period of time or terminate the contract.
The Board will move forward with the process of hiring an SSLPS, in hopes of having one on the district’s premises soon.
