Armed Campus Police Now Patrol Cherry Hill Schools

CHERRY HILL, NJ — The Cherry Hill Public School District’s four campus police officers and its security director are now all armed as of Monday, April 23, according to a letter from the district’s superintendent.
The district director of security has been armed since March 28, the day after the Cherry Hill Public School District Board of Education passed the policy. The campus officers were armed as of Monday, according to Cherry Hill Public School District Superintendent Dr. Joseph Meloche.

The four campus police officers replace the Cherry Hill police officers who were assigned to patrol the two high schools, Meloche said. Two officers are stationed at bother Cherry Hill High School East and Cherry Hill High School West, and officers from the Cherry Hill Police Department will still conduct occasional walk-throughs. Cherry Hill police officers are still assigned to patrol the middle schools and elementary schools.

“Our campus police officers are fully credentialed by the New Jersey Police Training Commission, are authorized to be armed and all have worked for police departments outside of the school district,” Meloche said in a letter to parents. “Earlier this week, we released a job posting for five additional campus police officers for our district for the 2018-2019 school year. These new officers will be assigned to the middle schools and elementary schools. We will begin the interview process for these positions in early May.”

In March, the school district announced that it would be employing “fully equipped cops” at the district’s schools as part of its enhanced security measures. This change and a host of other changes were announced after residents packed a Board of Education meeting to question officials about security and to voice outrage about the reported suspension of an AP History teacher at Cherry Hill High School East who voiced his own concerns about the lack of security in the district's schools.

Students staged a protest in the hallways of Cherry Hill High School East on and hundreds of students walked out of class on back-to-back days. The protests drew national attention. They walked out once again as part of the March 14 walkout day. This time, students at Cherry Hill High School West carried silhouettes to represent the Parkland shooting victims.

“I am grateful to the many folks who attended and participated in our community wide safety and security discussions,” Meloche said in his letter. “As a community, together we will continue to work to provide an environment that focuses on safety for our children. We have also provided updated resources for families, including mental health and crisis intervention information, on our website, www.chclc.org, under the ‘Departments’ pull-down menu by clicking the ‘Student Assistance’ link. The direct link is www.chclc.org/departments/studentassistance. Families requiring printed information regarding these resources may contact their building principal.”

See related: Attorney Pens Letter In Defense Of Suspended Cherry Hill Teacher

Patch file photo