Loudoun sheriff pushes for SROs in elementary schools

A debate over expanding the use of school resource officers is heating up in Loudoun County.

The sheriff held a town hall meeting Wednesday night where the community learned more and got to weigh in.

Sheriff Mike Chapman stood at the front of the cafeteria explaining why he wants to add school resource officers at dozens of elementary schools in Loudoun County. At the back of the room, opponents held signs and wore shirts that say “counselors not cops.”

They’re not a panacea for everything, but they’re an extra layer of protection that works with all the other elements that are in the school,” Chapman said. “This is what we need to do, and this is why we’re going forward with this”

sot opponent lynn davis 18 53 11 “We don’t need to be putting more cops in schools and overpolicing our children,” said Lynn Davis, who attended the meeting. “We need to give them mental health.”

Loudoun already has SROs in middle and high schools. Chapman has been trying to expand the program into the county’s 60 plus elementary schools for years. He’s hoping to get the funding this year to make it happen — $6.7 million the first year, then $18 million annually after the program is fully implemented in four years.

There were a few tense moments at the town hall.

While some expressed support for adding SROs, there were concerns about Immigration and Customs Enforcement in schools. Chapman said SROs do not perform immigration enforcement.

Others expressed concern that students of color could be impacted more if police are allowed in elementary schools.

Even if the program gets the money, it’s unclear if the school board would approve it. News4 spoke to two board members, one for and one against.

“We do have a really great school district and a really safe district generally, so I think this is just kind of the natural extension,” said Board Member Amy Riccardi. “We already have SROs in our middle schools and our high schools, and so extending that program into our elementary schools is just a normal next step I think.”

“If the proposal is to extend the SRO program, I think we have to look at and talk about those potential effects on our students of color and our special needs students,” said Board Member Anne Donohue.

While the sheriff says adding SROs in the county’s elementary schools will make them even safer, opponents say that money should be spent on other priorities.

The sheriff will discuss his plan to expand the SRO program at the Board of Supervisors meeting on March 9.