MILFORD, Ohio — Milford Exempted Village Schools is working to hire more School Resource Officers, with the aim of bringing enough on board to have a dedicated SRO for every building in the district.
“I know that they’re here to protect us, I know that they would, I have no doubt about that so I know it was the right decision to make,” said Superintendent John Spieser.
He said it's something his administration and the Board of Education have been discussing for awhile, but it's happening now because of a safety grant the police departments that the district partners with received.
Milford Schools partners with both Miami Township and City of Milford Police. The police departments pay for half of the SRO's salaries and the district pays for the other half, according to Spieser.
He said this decision isn't just about making the district safer, though.
"Beyond the policing piece and the security that they provide us, it's that relationship building, it's working with families. They do so much more," Spieser said.
Officer Jaimie Porter is one of the district's current SROs. She's been at Charles Seipelt Elementary for two years and spends part of her days walking around the playground and lunchroom, handing out stamps to excited children.
“They wanted stickers, I couldn’t do that, but this is a way to give them something every day," she said. “I joke that I’m following them around all day now.”
She said she sees interactions like that, playing with students on the playground and greeting them with a hug as just one part of her job.
“It’s important because at this age a lot of them don’t know the police, they haven’t had any interaction or they’ve only had bad interaction," Porter said.
The other part of her job is keeping them safe.
“I work with the schools on safety plans and drills, evacuation drills and lockdown drills and make sure that they are covering all of their bases to make sure the school stays secure and safe," Porter said.
And for Porter, this is the dream job.
“I went to Milford Schools, I live here, my daughter goes to the schools. It’s my community and I think it means that much more to be because of that," she said.
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