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(508) 398-7653 |
Dial 9-1-1 for Emergencies |
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The School Resource
Officer |
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Without argument,
Dennis-Yarmouth Regional High School is the busiest place in either town. Everyday well over one thousand people
gather in what amounts to a small, self contained city. D-Y High School is a community unto
itself. Its citizenry comes to work
everyday on it’s own public transportation
system. D-Y contains what equates to
its own health clubs, entertainment venue, sports stadium, restaurant, office
spaces, bank, health clinic, and why not, its own police station. Considering the composition of its
population it makes sense for this community-in-a-community to be so equipped. Many people unfortunately jump
to the conclusion that having police officers assigned to a school means that
the campus has become overrun by crime.
This is the short-sighted view of the uninformed. True enough, high school is not what it
used to be but in the words of Billy Joel, “The good old days weren’t always good and tomorrow ain’t as bad as it seems.” People who are moving through their teen
years in today’s world are definitely exposed to experiences and
circumstances that in many cases their parents did not face until adulthood
if at all. It only stands to reason
that a responsible support system would access a variety of resources in
defense of and on behalf of it’s children, including
the police. If we view adolescence as a
road then it is appropriate to think of the school resource officer as a
traffic cop. As the young people of
today travel the road of their personal development, turning left, turning
right, trying to find their way, many will encounter potholes and speed bumps
particularly through the high school years.
They will be faced with decisions on what lane to travel in, what on
or off ramps to take, when to pass, when to put on the breaks and without
question they will come to many crossroads, often without a map. In those circumstances it’s a good thing to
have someone, with their best interests at heart coupled with specialized
training and experience, who can call them by their first name to give them
directions. Now it’s true, sometimes
the traffic cop writes a ticket.
Consequences are a part of every decision, good or bad, and while we
hope the directions we give will always bring them home safely, it is
important to pull them over as early as possible if they start down the wrong
road, lest they continue on and drive off an allegorical cliff. Of course, prevention and intervention is
always the preferred course and there is nothing quite like
waving to the young, happy, and healthy motorist as they drive by on the road
to success. With this metaphor in
park, the more formal description of the school resource officer
follows. |
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The Yarmouth
Police and Dennis Police
Departments have reached out to offer specialized
knowledge to help our young people make good decisions in the face of the
difficulties that they will encounter in today's world. The School
Resource Officer Program has been in successful operation at Dennis-Yarmouth Regional High School since 1987. The School Resource Officer
is there for many reasons, most important of which is to be a resource to the students. Thank you for taking the time to stop by
and familiarize yourself with the Dennis-Yarmouth Regional School District
Police Services Detachment, or D-Y P.D. for short. This unit was
established by the Yarmouth Police in 1987 with a single officer assigned to
work a part-time schedule at D-Y High School.
Today the unit stands as an example of the very best form of
inter-municipal cooperation. D-Y
P.D. is a joint unit of Yarmouth Police and Dennis Police officers serving
fulltime as School Resource Officers
(SRO) at the high school and middle school. D-Y P.D. SROs also
provide services on an as-needed basis to the district’s intermediate and
elementary schools. The SROs of D-Y P.D. work jointly
and in partnership with educators to provide a full spectrum of police
services to the school community both on and off campus, to students,
teachers and parents. The unit has three primary areas of concentration. Law
Enforcement Most kids won’t go to the
police station to report an incident but they will seek out their SRO. •
Criminal
Investigation •
Traffic
Enforcement •
Crime
Prevention •
Emergency
Management Planning and Training Education You can find D-Y
P.D. SROs in classrooms presenting on topics such as: •
Constitutional
Law and Search & Seizure •
Structure
and Operation of the Criminal Justice System •
Effects
of drugs on the body and legal and school consequences •
Domestic
/ Dating Violence and Sexual Assault •
How
to maximize internship experiences and careers in law enforcement •
The
ever-popular “Stump-the-Cop” Q&A •
Assist
students with individual research projects and career counseling •
Provide
teachers with instructional material and other types of support Specialized
Counseling The SRO is one more resource
available to students, faculty, staff and parents to help solve complicated problems
at school or elsewhere. SROs are not certified counselors but as experienced
police officers they have spent much of their professional lives working with
people in crisis, often when no other resource is available. The SRO is
available to use their specialized training and knowledge to support school
social workers and guidance counselors or to meet privately with students to
assist with all types of issues. Prevention
& Intervention When not concentrating on the
big three areas we are almost constantly engaged in various forms of prevention
& intervention. •
Stopping
the bad stuff before it starts whenever
possible We look forward to continued
success. Combining the resources of our school system and our police department
will provide a safer learning environment and a broader educational
experience. Some of the other services
provided: ·
Serving
as a role model to students. ·
Deterring
misconduct through prevention and intervention. ·
Assisting
the school administration when others commit acts of violence or other
crimes. ·
Serving
as liaison between the police department and the school. ·
Assisting
staff with classroom activities involving instruction on various criminal
justice issues. ·
Providing
primary source information to students working on individual projects. ·
Assisting
with security of the school and it’s grounds. ·
Sustaining
the reality that our school is a safe learning environment. ·
Providing
teacher and staff training. ·
Acting
as a resource to parents. ·
Alcohol
and other drug resistance education and prevention. ·
Providing
career counseling to students interested in the law enforcement field.
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