Students walked the hallways on Monday for the first day of classes, but they weren’t the only ones hoping for a smooth first day. Law enforcement officers around the county also began their first day.
I’m sure kindergartners were a bundle of nerves as they separated from parents for a first full day away and maybe some high school freshman were worried they wouldn’t find all of their classes.
But do law enforcement officers worry about whether their first day will be a good one? I found out after talking to two local school resource officers that they want a smooth first day as well.
I was reminded by Capt. John Sifford with the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office that this school year will mark the first full year that school resource officers will be back in the middle schools.
Resource officers haven’t been in the middle schools since 2009, with the exception of Knox Middle, who has had Salisbury Police Officer Shanita Millsaps. However, her position was funded by the Salisbury Police Department.
The state cut funding for school resource officers, which ultimately led to their removal from the middle schools. The Rowan-Salisbury school board applied and received a grant for funding for training and to pay the officers for the next couple of years.
This leads me back to my question of whether officers had a good first day.
Salisbury High School SRO Rebecca Sexton said she was thankful for a smooth first day.
“Everything was more in order,” she said.
It’s her second year at Salisbury High and she looks forward to this year being more calmer than last.
In the February the school year was marred by an on-campus shooting of one its students. Shaleek Williams was shot while trying to diffuse a fight outside the school’s gymnasium. He was taken to the hospital and has since recovered. The accused shooter remains in the county detention center.
“Thank the Lord our day went pretty smooth,” she said Monday afternoon.
Sexton noted a handful of students still had to work out their class schedules and she was proud of the freshman class who seemed to handle their day well.
This first day was easier for Sexton than last year, she said, because she already knew some of the students.
“I felt more relaxed. Knowing the students made it a whole lot better,” she told me.
Sexton also said she attributed her “smooth” first day to the teachers and administrators.
Sheriff’s Deputy Tommie Cato is an SRO at Erwin Middle School. He told me one of his goals for the year was to try to “bridge that relationship gap.”
I imagine Cato, like so many officers likely spend their time working to gain the trust of some students.
Maybe some students know a relative who was arrested or heard of someone who did not have a good encounter with law enforcement.
Tommie Cato, who has spent many of his law enforcement years as a trooper, is now spending it amongst the youth.
He doesn’t see himself as just a school resource officer, he’s part counselor, teacher, and I’d dare say mentor and confidant. Some school resource officers teach gang education classes on campus.
“It’s just more of a way to help out our principals and assistant principals. Now since we are here, we can add some more options for them. I very much enjoy trying to help these kids and trying to steer them in the right direction to get them on the right path to be successful,” Cato said.
I’m reminded by the words of Capt. Sifford who said officers not only are there to protect the students, but can offer guidance to students who may not have a positive influence in their lives.
Here’s to hoping the officers can be that positive influence and that the rest of the school year is smooth.
Contact reporter Shavonne Potts at 704-797-4253.