- April 24, 2024
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It was 12 years ago this month when a teacher’s aide crashed her car into Indian Trails (which was a K-8 center at the time) in an attempt to kill herself and possibly others. The car went through the brick wall, but a support pole inside the wall took the brunt of the impact, likely saving students’ lives. Several children suffered injuries when debris launched across the classroom.
Then, last month, a former student posted threats against Matanzas High School students on his Facebook page, causing three schools to go on temporary lockdown.
These are just two instances, but every single day class is in session, safety is the No. 1 priority for the Flagler County School District. And officials continue to fine-tune the safety policies.
Winnie Oden, Everest Academy principal and liaison with the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, provided School Board members with an update at Tuesday’s regular meeting.
“I think when you talk about safety just in general that there has been a real paradigm shift — it was something we took for granted years ago,” Oden said. “And if you ask any community member, they will tell you that the top priority of school is safety. If you have safety, everything else will fall in line. I’m very proud of Flagler County because it has come to understand (that complacency can be detrimental).”
School resource officers
And so, school officials continue to have discussions with the Sheriff’s Office, with the hopes of expanding the School Resource Officer Program into elementary schools.
As it stands right now, SROs assigned to particular schools are full-time employees making about $58,000 per year. If a school needs an officer for an overtime detail, the deputy gets paid about $32 an hour.
The district pays 74% of the cost of the SROs, and School Board member Colleen Conklin said on Tuesday that she hopes that will change under the newly elected Sheriff Jim Manfre’s tenure.
“Over the years, it’s dwindled and the cost has shifted — the burden is really completely on the School District,” Conklin said.
In a phone interview on Wednesday, Manfre said he would be open to a money discussion.
“If I value the program, then ... hopefully in the new budget year, we can look to try and make it a 50-50 proposition,” Manfre said. “But that’s obviously subject to the other demands of the agency.”
Manfre also said he would be open to a multiyear contract with the district as opposed to the year-to-year agreement that is currently in place.
“(That way) we can show we have a long-term commitment to the program,” he said.
Manfre also said he has both short- and long-term goals in regard to school safety.
In the long term, Manfre hopes to install the School Resource Officer program in elementary schools — much like it was during his first tenure as sheriff.
The short-term goal, Manfre said, is to have the current SROs make frequent visits to elementary schools. The other possibility would be to hire retired law enforcement officers on a seasonal basis to create a presence in the schools.
Manfre said he has spoken to Superintendent Janet Valentine about his plans.
“Part of these SRO program goals is to make students more aware of law enforcement officers as mentors or aids as opposed to someone who you only see when they are arresting people,” Manfre said.
Color-coded threat levels
The School District also will adopt a color-coded threat notifications system, which will likely be disseminated over the Internet, including on FlaglerSchools.com, officials said.
School Board member John Fischer said keeping schools safe also has to do with common sense: students observing other students and parents observing their students.
“If you suppose something, make a call or talk to somebody about it,” Fischer said. “Even if it’s wrong, it’s better to be safe than sorry.”
Officials hope to implement the new color-coding system by the end of January.
“This is an extremely important conversation to everyone,” Conklin said. “But it’s a paramount conversation to parents, and it’s very much on the minds of everyone.”
Email Andrew O’Brien at [email protected].
