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NEW ULM -- The New Ulm School Board threw their support behind a resolution to fix the School Resource Officer (SRO) issue Thursday.
The board unanimously approved to adopt a resolution created by the Minnesota School Boards Association (MSBA). The resolution looks to lobby the state legislature regarding the ongoing SRO dilemma. Changes enforced effective August 1 restrict what an SRO can do to restrain students if they need to. Police Commander Dean Barstad explained the changes and what they mean for SROs
"The bans in place prohibit anybody affiliated with the school, including the school resource officers, from grabbing a student in any manner that might restrict their breathing or their movement," he said. "It bans them from placing students in a prone position. That takes a few things out of the hands of our officers. Those are tactics that might be very important for those officers to effectively do their jobs."
These changes have led to over 30 schools shutting down their SRO programs. Most recently, Blue Earth County reinstated its SRO program in St. Clair and Lake Crystal Schools.
Now the MSBA is looking to clear up the recent changes and give SROs back the tools they need. The organization will submit a statement drafted by Kyle Christensen of the Farmington School Board to the legislature urging them to amend the changed statutes. Among their requests are to clarify and expand the definition of reasonable force for SROs and to remove "school resource officer" and "police officer contracted with the district" from the definition of agents or employees the changed statute covers.
Board member Steve Gag said he, Melissa Sunderman, and Matt Ringhofer will be attending the MSBA delegate assembly next month. They wanted support for the proposed legislative changes from the school board before the assembly. Sunderman said their SRO program directors support these changes fully.
"We did ask the chief of police and SRO to look over it to see if there’s anything they would add or change," she said. "They thought [MSBA] covered what the [SRO program] needed."
Ringhofer added he, Gag, and Sunderman believe there is strong support not only from the Farmington area but across the entire state for these changes. Board member Amanda Groebner made the motion to adopt the proposed resolution, which board member Christie Dewanz seconded.