Police Chief, Principals Would Like to See Cops Back in the Schools

Port Washington ended its school liaison officer program about seven years ago because of budget limitations, but Police Chief Kevin Hingiss said that doesn’t mean that law enforcement can’t play an active role when it comes to the issue of bullying at the schools.

“In regards to prevention (of bullying), we have and will do talks in the schools to the students letting them know the consequences of bullying  and what to do and who to tell if they are being bullied,” Hingiss said in an e-mail. “If somebody is bullying, they may be warned about the consequences, issued a citation or a juvenile court referral pending on the level of conduct. The biggest help we get is supportive parents.”

And even though there is no liaison officer in place, Hingiss said the department maintains an “excellent” and active relationship with the schools. A Port police officer stops in for daily check-ins with school administration and will visit the school on an as-needed basis.

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“Our calls to the schools vary greatly from week to week. Most calls are minor in nature, but could lead to anything from a verbal warning to an arrest,” Hingiss said. “Probably the most common reason is behavior that is disorderly conduct in nature. This, again, can be minor or lead to an arrest.”

Hingiss has expressed the desire to , and all three district principals who spoke to Patch said they see value behind that idea. The program, which put officers in , was a joint effort with the school district and .

“The liaison program would be an asset to the middle school,” Principal Galarowicz said, adding that the presence of the officers allowed the schools to incorporate curriculum that got officers in front of the students.

“It was nice having that person as a face,” Principal Johnson said, adding that more regular contact with officers helps elementary students to be comfortable around police.

The more constant presence of an officer in the schools is behind the reasons that Hingiss finds the program a valuable one, too.

“The liason officer or school resource officer builds relationship and trusts with the students,” Hingiss said. “This helps in many aspects of law enforcement.”