Deputies working on patrol will be required to stop by each school in their assigned geographical area.
It’s all about being more visible to the staff, students and potential criminals, Sgt. Monte Mayer Mayer said. The visits, he said, could last between five to 45 minutes, depending on the deputies’ schedule and the school environment. He called them “relatively brief visits.”
By being on site, deputies may derail potential “sinister acts,” Mayer said. The success of the program will be difficult to gauge, he said, because it will be impossible to count the number of potential crimes that are stopped.
Butler County sheriff’s Deputy Corby Hansel stopped by Bogan Elementary School in Oxford a couple of times Tuesday to check on things and visit with students.
“It helps create a safer environment for everyone here,” Hansel said. “Being visible is the best thing we have; a Deputy’s presence will help deter intruders from carrying out their intentions.”
Tina Flaig, an educational assistant at Bogan, said “our school is somewhat isolated so having an officer check in on us makes us not feel so on our own.”
Added Educational Assistant Dawn Dickman: “Deputy Hansel has gotten to know the kids and their families so everyone feels safer.”
Jones said tight budgets have made it difficult for many districts to pay for full-time school resource officers, but safety continues to be a big concern in the wake of mass shootings at schools like the one at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Conn.
The move was applauded by school officials throughout the county.
AJ Huff, spokeswoman for Madison Local Schools, said even before this week, sheriff deputies frequently stopped by the school to have lunch. She said it’s reassuring to see deputies walking the halls, in the cafeteria, or driving through the campus.
“We all want the same thing: safer schools,” she said. “The more they’re here, the safer we feel.”
John Thomas, spokesman for Edgewood City Schools, said Deputy Zach Lewis visited the district of 3,850 on Tuesday and ate lunch with students at the high school. He said the district is proud of its safety record and past practices, including putting buzzers on all school building doors and extensive crisis management training of its administrators and teachers. He said the district welcomes the sheriff’s efforts “with open arms.”
“I think it’s great any time our county can step up and help out to try to increase security and safety within our schools and the whole community,” Thomas said. “We’ve talked to Trenton police and the county, and they have made recommendations of where they think they can be of help, and they’ve done that.”
Editor Kevin Aldridge and Photographer Nick Daggy contributed to this report.
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