By Brittany Anderson
HAYS COUNTY – School resource officers (SROs) are an integral part of campus safety, addressing various in-school problems from drugs and alcohol to potential threats or violence.
The Hays CISD Board of Trustees unanimously approved an interlocal agreement between the district and county to hire three additional SROs at Hays CISD campuses during its regular meeting on Aug. 29. The board also previously discussed the item at the Aug. 22 agenda review meeting.
SROs are not involved in ordinary school discipline unless deemed necessary in some situations. They are, first and foremost, a law enforcement officer, and work under direction of the Hays County Sheriff's Office.
Jeri Skrocki, Hays CISD’s Head of District Safety and Security, said that one officer is currently in training and that the remaining two officers will be hired later after staffing is made available through the sheriff’s office.
The district already employs 12 full-time SROs who are assigned to secondary campuses. With the addition of three more officers for elementary campuses, the new agreement brings the total number of full-time SROs across the district to 15.
The agreement states that the additional SROs will be partially funded with federal funds. Hays County is a recipient of an American Rescue Plan Act State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund allocation.
According to agenda documents, Hays County and Hays CISD will each pay 50% of the three additional officers' base salary, certification pay, FICA/Medicare, retirement, insurance, fringe benefits and vehicle maintenance, bringing the annualized cost to $311,954. Additionally, documents state that the three additional officers are funded separately and aside from the 12 SROs already in the district.
Hays CISD specifically will pay a total of $51,992 for each additional officer per quarter, or $155,977 for all three for the first three quarters. Officer services are generally provided during the regular school year (beginning in August and ending in May) and upon request from the district, in June and July.
The cost of hiring the three additional officers brings the total SRO budget to $1.4 million. Spending for the previous year was just under $1.1 million.
