Student-Led Task Force Recommends Retaining SROs in Salem-Keizer Schools
During the first Salem-Keizer School Board meeting of 2021, the Board heard from a large and diverse group of local students who reported their research on the controversial subject of School Resource Officers in the district.
The task force was created by District Superintendent Christy Perry after the District received a significant number of concerned comments last year during the months of heated nationwide racial tension that followed the police killing of George Floyd.
The task force asked to report to the board tonight after months of meeting confidentially and agreeing to making decisions unanimously.
According to the Salem Reporter, the task force includes “Black, Native American, Pacific Islander, Latino and Asian students, with representatives from most district high schools.”
In testimony to the board and in their report, students described how many of them came from different perspectives and with different ideas at the start of the process:
[The group] was definitely divided on whether or not we should have SROs in the Salem Keizer School District. Coming from a variety of backgrounds we were far from being on the same page when the process first began. Our process was very extensive and with that, it was not easy, as we progressed towards our recommendation.
During their meetings, the group heard from numerous community leaders: Former Salem Police Chief Jerry Moore, SRO Robert Acosta, John Van Dreal (Psychologist), Rob Schoepper (McKay Principal), Jennifer Strong (McKay Counselor), Dwight Roberson II (McKay Counselor/Coach), Keista McCrae (McKay Behavior Specialist/Coach), J.W. Friday (Student Advocate), and Royal Harris (Student Advocate).
The Task Force’s recommendation is “to not remove SROs from the Salem Keizer School District and instead make changes to the system that needs to be fixed rather than getting rid of it as a whole.”
Instead, they recommend four categories of changes: Accountability, Relationship Training, Mentorship, and Student Engagement. You can read more about their recommendation in the School Board Meeting Agenda for January 12, 2021, starting on page 4.
