ANSWER:

In the current incident reporting process and collection of information, we do not have a designated category for School Resource Officer (SRO) involvement. This data is not something we have tracked in the past as we see the partnership of these specially trained officers as part of the fabric of the safety compliment in their assigned high schools and when they support middle or elementary schools. SRO interaction actually is a normal part of the student day. SROs build relationships with students and staff, often greet our students in the morning, are present in the hallways during transitions, interact during lunch, and participate in other school events.

Through a keyword search in the current school year incident reporting data, “SRO” was referenced in 390 reported student or school incidents. As we transition to a new incident reporting system, we will look for opportunities to capture and track SRO-related data. Historically, we have tracked student arrests, which represent incidents with law enforcement involvement that are outside our expectations for students in our learning environment. We are required to report student arrests on an annual basis to the Maryland State Department of Education.