South Carolina school campuses adding more officers for safety

ROCK HILL, S.C. — Students on school campuses across South Carolina will soon see a lot more men and women in uniform and armed.

State education leaders have unveiled which districts will see a portion of the 205 school resource officers that have been funded.

York County will have 16 new resource officers, four for each school district. Chester will have one, Lancaster four and Chesterfield four.

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The new officers are based on need and whether all campuses in the district have SROs already.

Rock Hill Police Officer Jonathan Moreno spends every day at Saluda Trail Middle School.

His goal isn't to just be law and order to these kids but someone they can depend on.

"I always want my office to be an open door, where kids can come in there, feel comfortable.  They know I can impact their decisions," Moreno said.

Mychal Frost with Rock Hill schools said it's good to have that extra layer for safety, especially at the high schools with close to 2,000 students and currently just one officer.

"Having one resource officer can be understood that that may not be enough. So, the benefit of this grant is it will allow us to provide additional coverage," Frost said.

In Rock Hill, officials just installed private security officers in every elementary school. The district has also revamped some older campuses and security systems to make them safer.

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Lancaster began adding rolling metal detectors last year. Chesterfield will permanently place detectors at each high school and middle school. Chester County announced new resource officers last spring to complement private security guards already in place.

The York 1 School District told Channel 9 that adding four SROs will double the number they currently have.

Many parents, who didn't grow up feeling unsafe at school, said they hear a different story from their children. They welcome the sight of more men and women in uniform on campus.

"I think having a police officer in the school, and the funding for that is a main priority," said Michael White.

The new officers will be in place as soon as they're hired and trained. Those details will be worked out between the schools and law enforcement.

Cox Media Group