After the first day back to school, some students showed up early to make sure they got to class on time. NBC6’s Julia Bagg reports on what officials want to do to mitigate the issues..
City commissioners in Pembroke Pines voted Monday night to keep school resource officers in all schools for the next two school years.
Last week, the city looked into a plan which would have replaced SROs in elementary and middle schools with armed guardians as a way to save money.
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WATCH HEREParents rejected the idea, and after a meeting on Aug. 7 that went late into the night, officials decided to keep SROs in elementary schools until winter break.
“The guardian program, for what it is, it works for some communities, it doesn't work in Pembroke Pines,” Commissioner Jay Schwartz said at the time.
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That decision has now been extended.
Some showed up to Monday's meeting to thank commissioners.
"Thank you for fighting for the contract. It’s not about money. It’s about the safety and that should always come first," one woman said.
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Because the school district doesn’t have its own police department, it relies on cooperation with local police agencies to provide campus protection.
This has traditionally been a more or less 50-50 arrangement to share the costs, and the district increased the amount it pays police agencies from $64,000 to $113,000 per officer.
Because Pembroke Pines said it was losing more than $2 million with that deal, the district provided armed guardians as a cheaper alternative for the elementary and middle schools.
In Broward, 55 sites are covered with BCPS armed guardians. That’s 47 elementary schools and eight centers or technical schools.
Armed guardians have to have hours of training and experience in law enforcement, the military or as a security guard. The sheriff’s office trains the guardians and supervises the program, but it still wasn't enough for parents.
“Having an armed guardian is not the same, it is only a weapon on campus,” one parent said at the meeting on Aug. 7.
