NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — At an SRO training in Metro Nashville, the police chief and mayor said they're committed to adding more full-time officers to the team.
While every Metro Nashville high school and middle school will have at least one school resource officer dedicated to that campus every day, not every elementary school will.
According to Chief John Drake, MNPD is looking near and far for people with experience in school safety and security. The chief said the department is actively recruiting school resource officers that work outside of Nashville.
"So, we'll bring them in, they'll go through a lateral training — which is about 11 weeks — and they'll learn our way of doing things," said Chief Drake. "I like to say we have one of the best standards in the country, and so we want whoever's coming in to be trained to that standard. And then they'll be allocated to a school."
Not everyone is in favor of city police officers in elementary schools. The police chief said he understands it is a sensitive setting.
There have already been discussions about those SROs wearing more casual uniforms, similar to what bike patrol officers wear. They will also be trained on best practices for dealing with young children.
The chief and mayor spoke about the plan on the second day of a two-day training for new and returning school resource officers. Also in attendance at the training were the members of the department's new School Rapid Response Team. Fourteen officers will staff that specialized team, including Officer Rex Engelbert, one of the first officers on the scene of the deadly mass shooting at The Covenant School.
"If there's threat assessments to be made — different problems — potential for weapon, or some type of disruption. They'll be able to respond to any situation [and] if of course, the ultimate bad thing happens. But on a day-to-day basis, they'll be invested totally in school," Drake said.
