COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina Department of Education is offering to fund additional school resource officers in every district in the state.
South Carolina’s State Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman said the decision to add resource officers was a top priority.
“Well we know that students cannot learn unless they feel safe. So, our number one priority is always school safety,” Spearman said in her office Friday.
The Superintendent said the General Assembly and Governor Henry McMaster made it possible to fund 205 new school resource officer positions across the state.
Several districts in the state will receive funding for more than one additional SRO position.
Richland One School District will get funding for one officer. Richland Two will get 4 openings. Lexington Districts One through Four are each getting at least 2 spots.
Newberry County School District will receive funding for four new officers, which Sheriff Lee Foster said will help in elementary schools.
“We have an officer that floats between the elementary schools. That's a daunting task because that's just one officer to cover a number of elementary schools throughout the county. But we still have some coverage there. This will give us the ability to have coverage there. But, first we've got to find staff to do it. There is a huge shortfall of officers in South Carolina. It's a nationwide problem,” Foster said.
The Sheriff explained that Newberry County is already short-staffed and has a lack of applicants, which he said is a problem across the Palmetto State.
Foster continued, calling the new funding an outstanding idea, but expressed concern that many law enforcement agencies will find it difficult to fill the spots.
Spearman said they will reserve money for districts next year, if they can't fill the positions this year. The districts and their law enforcement partners have till January to tell the state if they plan to use the money immediately, in the second half of the school year, or next year.
“We hope that by the end of next year we can say that we have offered funding for school resource officers in every school in South Carolina,” Spearman added.
And, she said she’s not done there. In an effort to increase safety and help in the classroom, Spearman said the SRO additions were simply a first step.
“Another of our very important goals, working with the General Assembly, SLED, and the Department of Mental Health, is to also have a mental health counselor in every school in South Carolina by 2022,” Spearman added.
“When we can complete that, I believe that this is a way that we can not only keep our schools safer, but give really important support to teachers in the classroom,” Spearman continued.
This year, teachers, and the advocacy group SCforEd, have said repeatedly help with in-classroom discipline and mental healthcare are two needed areas for improvement.
To see how many openings your district is receiving, click here.