By DERRICKE DENNIS
WISH-TV | wishtv.com
School resource officers from across Indiana and a few neighboring states were at the Fishers Police Department for two days last week to learn and share best practices on youth violence and crime prevention.
WISH-TV coverage of the training was part of its YATVAC campaign, which stands for Youth Alternatives to Violence and Crime.
Organizers say it’s in schools where the signs of youth violence and crime are often seen first, before anything actually happens. School resource officers, known in law enforcement by the acronym SROs, are on the front lines.
Sgt. Christopher Owens of the Fishers Police Department said, “Violence in schools across the country is real, and when it occurs, the SROs are in place to help mitigate that risk and help prevent the risk.”
He helped to the lead the two-day SRO training in a classroom setting where dozens of officers spent hours getting a heads-up on assessing school threats, crime prevention through environmental or building design, behavioral analysis, and social media investigations.
“A lot of threats are leaked online prior to them committing an act,” Owens said. “So I think that’s one of the bigger ones that we’re covering, how to investigate social media crimes and social media threats and to use that knowledge to keep our schools safe.”
Owens said youth violence and crime in neighborhoods and on the streets is often foreshadowed in the classroom. The advanced SRO training helped school resource officers spot the warning signs and take action.
“We’ve had instances where students have reported either anonymously or in person through an administrator something they have seen or heard, and it has resulted in a threat assessment where we potentially prevented a violent act from occurring.”
Another benefit the training was officers sharing what’s working and what’s not from one district to another.
“So it’s extremely beneficial to learn what other districts are experiencing, the challenges. Some of the stuff we’re talking about is what are the challenges everyone’s experiencing and how they’re overcoming those challenges.”
Owens said that “the best defense of school safety is a holistic approach.”
“So SROs, the students, the staff and even the parents are all responsible because the students are the ones who hear and see everything. It kind of goes back to the if you see something say something.”
It all works together so that these school resource officers can do something before it’s too late.
This story was originally published by WISH-TV at wishtv.com/yatvac/school-resource-officers-train-in-fishers-to-prevent-youth-violence.
