MUSD to have 3 cops on campuses

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There will be a little more protection on campus for the Maricopa Unified School District this year.

The district will have three student resource officers thanks to a federal grant from Community Oriented Policing Services, a branch of the U.S. Department of Justice.

Previously there was only one district SRO, at the high school.

Officer Chris Evans from the Maricopa Police Department will be patrolling Maricopa High School, while Officer Mario Ortega will be at Maricopa Wells Middle School and Officer Jeff Pokrant will be at Desert Wind Middle School.

“It’s a great partnership with the city of Maricopa to have these officers on our campuses,” said Superintendent Steve Chestnut. “We were excited to have one and now having three will be even better.”

Chestnut said the district currently does 14 safety drills, including fire-safety and lockdown drills, per year in the schools. There is also a locked-door policy at the schools.

“Safety is our number one priority,” Chestnut said. “If parents don’t feel comfortable sending their children to our schools then we are doing something wrong.”

“Having three student resource officers for the first time will allow us to have full coverage of all of the schools in the district and provide guidance, counseling, education and direction for students, parents and administrators,” Pokrant said.

Ortega and Evans will spend part of their time patrolling and working at MUSD’s six elementary schools.

“The National Association of School Resource Officers gave us month-long training on how to work as a team and properly educate and implement safety programs at the schools,” Evans said.

“We want to come in and teach the kids about respect as well as safety,” Ortega said.

Evans has a message for students in order to be safe.

“Pay attention to what’s around you, and don’t be afraid to speak up and approach us if you have a problem,” Evans said. “We can’t do our job as effectively without the eyes and the ears of the students.”