What kind of safety officer does your child’s Stanislaus public school have? Here’s a look
Do you know what kind of safety officers the public schools in your area have?
Here’s a look at how districts and colleges around Stanislaus County are keeping their students safe:
Some districts have school resource officers (SRO), and others have school safety officers (SSO).
SROs are sworn officers from local police departments, according to the Education News Organization. These officers can work part time or full time on school campuses. Nearly all SROs carry firearms and handcuffs and have the power to make arrests.
SSOs do not carry firearms. They protect students from themselves and intruders and offer safety education, according to the online learning platform Study.org.
Modesto City Schools
MCS employs eight SSOs to patrol campuses across the district, spokeswoman Linda Mumma Solorio said. They are not armed but do have the authority to detain people.
Turlock Unified School District
Pitman and Turlock high schools employ SROs, according to TUSD’s director of communications, family engagement and outreach, Marie Russell. The officers also work with the elementary and middle school campuses, according to the City of Turlock website. The two SROs currently listed are Officers Mark Alberti and Matt Ulrich.
“The children learn to trust these officers in a way that they may not be able to in any other ‘normal’ police interaction. It is our goal that the children at these schools look to the School Resource Officers as a constant and reliable presence on campus and in their lives,” according to the city’s website.
Ceres Unified School District
CUSD spokeswoman Beth Jimenez said the district uses SROs.
Patterson Joint Unified School District
Ken Fitzgerald, director of student support services, said Patterson JUDS has one full-time SRO, contracted with the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department, who is available to support all district school sites. It also has multiple SSOs across campuses, who are able to respond to student fights and have specialized training but do not carry any weapons like guns or pepper spray, he said.
Riverbank Unified School District
In January 2023, the Riverbank City Council approved the reinstatement of an SRO from the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department, according to meeting records. The district originally eliminated the position because of “budgetary constraints”. RUSD and the city agreed that the school district will pay the city $130,000 annually for the SRO.
Barbara Brown, RUSD director of student services, said the district also contracts with Interquest Detection Canines to inspect high schools and charter schools for middle school students.
The private company reaches out to Brown over text, at random, and she is responsible for alerting principals whose campuses the dog handlers plan to visit.
“A lot is about alcohol and drugs, but they also tend to hit on gunpowder items, firecrackers and ammunition. When (the dogs) go to the classroom, the teacher takes the students outside the classroom. The students are supposed to leave their stuff in the classroom,” said Brown.
Oakdale Joint Unified School District
Superintendent Dave Kline said OJUSD has an SRO, contracted with Oakdale Police Department, who serves all schools in the district.
California State University, Stanislaus
Stanislaus State is approved for 14 sworn, armed and academy-trained police officers, including himself, University Police Chief Clint Strode said. Many of the officers have been former students of the university.
The California State University board decided to arm its officers in the 1970s, Strode said.
“One of the big differences between the CSU and the community college is that we have a 24-hour population of several hundred individuals — roughly 700 full-time residents,” he told The Bee.
Modesto Junior College
MJC has 48 unarmed security officers ,said Chief Roland Gallardo, director of district public safety. The college calls the Modesto Police Department for emergencies.
Gallardo said MJC looking into getting armed officers for the campus.
Former Bee staff writer Adam Echelman contributed to this story.
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