4312 - School Safety and Security Services Program

 

At the beginning of each school year, if the District has safety and security staff working on school property, the District must present to and discuss with students, and distribute to students’ families, information about the role and responsibilities of safety and security staff.

 

Definitions 

“Safety and security staff” means a school resource officer (SRO), a school security officer (SSO), a campus security officer (CSO), and any other commissioned or noncommissioned employee or contractor, whose primary job duty is to provide safety or security services for a public school. Issaquah School District does not utilize SROs on its campuses.

Purpose

The purpose of the Issaquah School District safety and security services program is to improve school safety and the educational climate at the school. The safety and security staff shall be integrated into the school community through participation in faculty and student meetings and assemblies as appropriate. They shall support a positive school climate by developing positive relationships with students, parents, and staff, and by helping to promote a safe, inclusive, and positive learning environment. Safety and security staff are valuable team members of School Based Threat Assessment Teams, which are preventative in purpose. They are encouraged to participate consistent with Regulation 3225 and 3225P.

Limitations

The primary responsibility for maintaining proper order and conduct in the schools resides with school principals or their designee, with the support of other school staff. Principals or their designee maintain order and handle all student discipline matters consistent with Regulation 3241 and 3241P – Classroom Management, Discipline, and Corrective Action. A school resource officer is prohibited from becoming involved in formal school discipline situations that are the responsibility of school administrators.

Training

The District shall ensure that all safety and security staff have completed the training series required by law.

Requests for Intervention

Teachers and school administrators may ask safety and security staff to intervene if a student’s presence poses an immediate and continuing danger to others or an immediate and continuing threat of material and substantial disruption of the educational process or in other emergency circumstances consistent with 3432 and 3432P– Emergencies. Safety and security staff do not need to be asked before intervening in emergencies.

Complaints

The superintendent shall establish procedures by which students and/or their parents/guardians may file complaints with the District and, when applicable, a local law enforcement agency, related to the District’s safety and security staff including the process for investigating and responding to such complaints.

Annual Review and Adoption of Agreements with Law Enforcement Agencies or Security Guard Companies

If a law enforcement agency or security guard company supplies safety and security staff to work on school property when students are expected to be present, the District must annually review and adopt an agreement with the law enforcement agency or security guard company. The agreement must:

A. Include a clear statement regarding safety and security staff duties and responsibilities related to student behavior and discipline that: prohibits a school resource officer from becoming involved in formal school discipline situations that are the responsibility of school administrators; recognizes that a trained safety and security staff knows when to informally interact with students to reinforce school rules and when to enforce the law; clarifies the circumstances under which teachers and school administrators may ask safety and security staff to intervene with a student; explains how safety and security staff will be engaged in creating a positive school climate and positive relationships with students; and describes the process for families to file complaints with the school and, when applicable, the local law enforcement agency or the company that provides the safety and security staff on contract related to safety and security staff and a process for investigating and responding to complaints;

B. Include a jointly determined hiring and placement process and a performance evaluation process; and

C. Either confirm that the safety and security staff have completed training series documentation provided by the educational service district or describe the plan for safety and security staff to complete the training series required by law.

The agreement review and adoption process must involve parents, students, and community members.

The superintendent or designee will develop additional procedures to implement this policy.