LETTER: Lysander Republicans: BCSD needs an SRO to protect its students

To the editor:

Wednesday night, March 7, a guest speaker attended the Lysander Republican Committee meeting and gave a presentation on active shooter incidents in school settings. The presentation focused on the role School Resource Officers play in preventing drug use, bullying and active shooter incidents in schools.

Following the presentation, The Lysander Republican Committee agreed that we are in support of having a School Resource Officer (SRO) assigned to every school in the Baldwinsville school district.

We believe that keeping our children safe while they are in school is something that every person in the Baldwinsville community can agree on. We realize that the school board is proposing several necessary improvements to structurally harden our school buildings, we believe that adding a school resource officer in every school is paramount for the safety of our children.

Senate Majority Leader John J. Flanagan said, “Schools must be safe havens, where students can learn and teachers can teach. In New York, we must act swiftly and decisively to implement additional measures in schools throughout our state to give students, parents and teachers the resources and peace of mind they deserve.” Two bills, S7811A and S7810A sponsored by Sen. Pat Gallivan, would authorize school districts throughout the state to receive state funding to hire school resource officers. Sen. Gallivan said, “As a former state trooper and Erie County Sheriff, I believe strongly in the SRO program as a way to enhance safety in our schools. It is time to enhance this program and provide resources so that every school benefits from having an SRO on-site.”

Active shooter incidents that occur in schools devastate families and communities. Experts agree that having a trained police officer in a school is the most important aspect of school safety. We encourage the school board to seriously consider assigning a school resource officer to every school in the district to prevent an active shooter incident from occurring in our community.