Bridging the Gap Between School Resource Officers and Gunshot Detection Alarms
The impact of school resource officers (SROs) on school shootings and overall school safety is a topic of ongoing debate. In the 1960s, the first SRO program was initiated in Flint, Michigan, as a response to increasing concerns about school violence and juvenile delinquency. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, more law enforcement agencies began to adopt the SRO model, and their primary focus was on maintaining discipline and handling criminal activities within schools. In some instances, SROs were initially introduced as a response to school shootings and other safety concerns. However, their role has evolved over time. SROs are law enforcement officers assigned to work in schools to provide security and serve as mentors to students which are now often involved in handling minor disciplinary issues that were traditionally addressed by school administrators.
The effectiveness of SROs in preventing school shootings specifically remains a complex issue. With an increase in school shootings in the United States, there has been an increase in SROs. Different states have responded differently to the increase in school shootings. Florida now requires a law enforcement officer or trained school guardian in every school. Whereas in 2020, the Denver School Boards in Colorado voted to remove SROs from schools based on the statistics that the majority of school students being ticketed or arrested were minority students. In a study done by University of Albany, SUNY and the RAND corporation they found that,
“SROs do effectively reduce some forms of violence in schools, but do not prevent school shootings or gun-related incidents. We also find that SROs intensify the use of suspensions, expulsions, police referrals, and arrests of students. These effects are consistently over two times larger for Black students than White students.”
Gunshot detection doesn’t take any racial component into the equation so there’s no potential for a racially motivated outcome.
SROs help minimize school violence, but when it comes to school shootings, there is no room for error. The sooner authorities are notified when the first shot is fired the more time and lives can be saved. One clear example of this situation is The Columbine High School shooting in Littleton, Colorado. The school custodian heard shots being fired and first called the SRO on duty instead of calling 911. The SRO then called 911 which cost the school 2-3 minutes of time where authorities had no understanding of the situation and the killing rampage continued. A gunshot detection system could have notified the authorities right away and saved minutes during the horrific event. Emergency notification systems can be a bridge between SROs and notifying law enforcement timely and accurately. The role that an SRO plays in a school environment has changed significantly over time. With school shootings being more prevalent, gunshot detection systems are readily available alarm systems that can help facilitate the coordination of school safety.
Ultimately, there is no definitive answer to whether SROs make a significant difference in preventing school shootings, and the effectiveness of SRO programs can vary widely depending on the specific circumstances of each school district and community. What we do know is that gun detection alarm systems have the ability to take out human error and save minutes when contacting authorities in a school shooting.