SROs Expected To Be In Place At Central Bucks East, West In September

DOYLESTOWN, PA — The Central Bucks School District is targeting September for the implementation of its Student Resource Officer (SRO) program at Central Bucks West and Central Bucks East high schools.

Kevin Spencer, the district's director of operations, updated the school board on Tuesday on the progress of the SRO program, officially announcing the district's partnership with the Bucks County Sheriff's Department to provide an SRO at West.

The district approached the Sheriff's Department after its initial overture to the Central Bucks Regional Police Commission failed to yield an agreement.

The commission, in a letter to the district, cited staffing issues as the chief obstacle. The commission also cited the lack of an operational plan, which Spencer said would be the responsibility of the commission since the SRO would be their employee.

"It left a lot of questions as to why the answer was no from the commission," Spencer told the school board.

Spencer also updated the board on discussions with Buckingham, noting that the district has been "actively working" with the Buckingham Township Supervisors and the Buckingham Township Police Department on an agreement, which he expects to be ready for committee review in August and board approval in September.

In the meantime, Spencer said both officers will be enrolled in a training course taking place locally from August 14 to 18. In addition, the district will be coordinating the arrival of officers for September with the high school's administrative teams.

"We are committed to the safety of our students and our staff and despite the recent setbacks, there is a lot of progress," Spencer told the board. "We've made a lot of progress relative to the two agreements we need to have in place. And we're looking for that September target to get these officers in the schools and building on the success we've had at South with Officer Bell."

In addition to the SRO program, Spencer said the district is moving forward in several other key areas to enhance school safety throughout the district, including through a number of building improvement projects.

Those include the installation of additional cameras, improvements to card and key access entry, and reviewing its visitor management systems "to ensure they are robust and we're providing those safe and secure environments for our students and our staff."

The budget also allocates funding for additional school security staff along with ALICE (Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate) training and tabletop exercises.

"We've been active in the hiring process and selecting some great qualified candidates. We looking to be able to bring them on board in September," he said.