Two valley cities to vote on new proposed contracts for school resource officers

The Cathedral City and Palm Springs city councils are set to vote this week on new proposed contracts for school resource officers (SROs). 

This is after ongoing discussion on the school resource officer program and its role on Palm Springs Unified School District campuses. 

The four armed police officers typically on high school campuses were temporarily removed from schools in Palm Springs, Cathedral City, Desert Hot Springs and Rancho Mirage earlier this year. 

The officers were pulled amid concerns about the disciplinary roles those officers were playing. Now, new contracts are being negotiated between the school district and each city’s law enforcement agency. 

In the contract proposed for Cathedral City, the school resource officer program will cost the district approximately $176,000. For Palm Springs, it will cost the district about $182,000.  

Both contracts say that the hiring process will include input from both law enforcement and the school district.  

“We really look at the officers that we put on campus. It takes a really special kind of person to understand teenagers,” said Ltn. William Hutchinson, Palm Springs Police Dept. 

Those officers will complete special training to work closely with students. 

“We want them to feel comfortable. We want them to be able to come to us instead of run away from us. Building those relationships over time is critical for an SRO,” said Ltn. Hutchinson. 

As for their specific role on campus, both contracts say the “SROs are not disciplinarians and are not employed to ‘police students.’ Therefore, they are prohibited from involvement in enforcing school codes of conduct or engaging school discipline.” 

“We don’t want them to think we’re there to arrest them. We’re there to mediate, find additional ways to work them through their problems, so you avoid punishment like jail or fines,” added Ltn. Hutchinson. 

Cathedral City council will vote on their proposed contract on Wednesday this week, and Palm Springs city council will vote on theirs on Thursday. 

As for Desert Hot Springs and Rancho Mirage, those contracts are still being reviewed. All four contracts will need to be brought forward before the school district for final approval before any officers return to campuses.