Attention

The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not represent our advertisers

Thursday, June 16, 2011

BREAKING NEWS: Wicomico BOE to Cut School Resource Officers


The Wicomico County Board of Education is meeting this morning to discuss (among other things) a large cut in the BOE’s spending on School Resource Officers (Sheriff’s Deputies in the schools) and the BOE’s spending with County Parks and Rec.


MORE TO FOLLOW …

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

Price you pay for not raising taxes any more that was done. Just wait to see how bad schools get now! Administrators don't have the time to monitor instruction and lock up gang members.

Anonymous said...

Why don't you put your money where your mouth is and volunteer in the problem areas or fund an officer with your own funds?

Anonymous said...

8:55

But they can afford to have numerous assistant principals, assistants to assistants and a bloated bureaucracy. This is just another way to try to scare people like you to start yelling the sky is falling.

Anonymous said...

I'd really like to know why the heck our schools need DEANS OF STUDENTS. What does this position entail?

Anonymous said...

I agree with 8:55. It speaks for the times we find ourselves in that resource officers are no longer a luxury. They are needed in today's schools. Today's school environments are nothing like those of the previous generation. Kids are doing a whole lot more than running in the halls or chewing gum! The revenue cap and then the laughable one-cent property tax increase has compromised many of our departments, inc. the BOE. We can't have it both ways. People like to see tax cuts or at least level funding, but less funding brings all the problems we're seeing---and we haven't seen what's to come.

Anonymous said...

Who pays the salaries for these SRO's? Cause if it is the Sheriff's dept. there should be no reason to remove the SRO's.

Anonymous said...

9:34: You really think we need another official making over 100k/year? Get a grip on reality people. When will you realize that the BOE can cut millions, saving all of us money, and not jeopardize one student's education? It's time for the parents to stand up and replace the Board. Taking out the resource officers is an asinine decision. I bet the BOE will STILL spend $250,000 sending dozens of people across the country....

Anonymous said...

924-Totally agree with that. That is the tactic of the public service sector. Scare tactics.

Anonymous said...

I haven't seen where the officer in our school does anything (MMHS). His fat behind sleeps 1/2 the day when he's not in the teacher's lounge watching TV or in the office gossiping with a parent, teachers and certain gossiping staff in the office. I have seen him on more than one occasion sleeping while getting paid overtime to be @ after school functions. Waste of money and a joke to most of the parents and kids.

Anonymous said...

I agree with 9:24
Here is my plan. Identify the cars the people drive over on Long
Avenue and follow the car for a week. Bet you will find them at the Mall, etc during work hours and not at the Schools.

Anonymous said...

there should be no need for police in schools.

Anonymous said...

Anon 10:26 - Have you lost your mind about NOT having officers in schools - we don't have enough of them in there. My son is a Junior at Bennett, and if even half of wht he tells me is actually going on, then these schools are zoos overrun with non-parented children who do as they please. The school employees are pretty much helpless because of the 'hands off' fears that they will be sued, and there are not enough cops around to counter everything. In fact, the kids text and call each other the exact whereabouts of the cops in school and keep close tab on this, then do something at the other end of the school, or coordinate multiple problems to make a mess of things....get real, we need all of the help we can get!

Anonymous said...

Overpaid teachers, administration. Of course they cut what will be most controversial. I don't care. The teachers are way overpaid for this area.
Just keep your hands out my pocket from now on. Long live the tax cap!

Anonymous said...

There shouldn't be a need for officers in the schools. Parents should be teaching their kids discipline and respect and start taking responsibility for the little monsters instead of having deputies babysitting the schools. As a tax payer I would rather see them on the street!

Anonymous said...

1. it's the schools fault (leadership and BOE) for putting up with this unacceptable behavior in the first place. the frog in the warm water applies here. crap or get off the pot. you know what needs to be done. kick these kids out, make the parents accountable, if a kid is kicked out, make him do work for the county or city gratis or for $1 a day. don't tell me they can't work cleaning up trash and litter along our roads. if they have to do this long enough perhaps they will see bad behavior and bad choices have consequences. stop treating these kids a babies.
yes, the BOE is trying to "scare" the citizens into thinking we must raise revenue/taxes to cover the cost of the school/childcare/zoo operation that is currently being offered to this county.
grow up. look at your current situation and make things better by making better choices.

Anonymous said...

Overpaid administration who does NOTHING for our children!

http://www.change.org/petitions/wicomico-board-of-education-remove-curtis-twilley-as-principal-of-pemberton-elementary-school

Sturg said...

11:26

It is unfortunate that you can't kick these unruly kids out of school but the NCLB Act of 2002 that was put in place by Bush doesn't allow this to happen. It should be something that is repealed and then you would see schools thrive when the unparented students get kicked out. I completely agree that parents should be held accountable. Fine the parents for their behavior and you will see how fast they straighten up. Don't pay the fine, then watch your own damn child!

Anonymous said...

9:34, Dean of Students is a fancy term for vice-principal, mostly dealing with discipline. As I understand the history of the position, it was a sort of "end run" around the BOE when the Council wouldn't fund an additional vice-principal in the high school. Change the name to "dean of students" and you, in effect, have another vp.

Anonymous said...

Institute stronger discipline. Fines on parents and the students sound fine to me. They could use that money toward the free lunch program, or bring back drivers ed. I feel there is no reason to waste the resources of an officer, and in a school is in my opinion.

Anonymous said...

Just checked-out the Board's website where it lists the proposed cuts to their budget. Something doesn't make sense here.If they were cut 7M it looks to me like their proposed cuts are at Level 5 to reach 7M. The SRO's are listed in Level 6. If cuts are made through Level 6 then it's 9M+. What kind of games are they playing over there at Long Avenue?

Anonymous said...

12:33

The proposed cuts are just that...proposed. As was stated at many of the budget meetings (which you probably didn't go to) it was stated that the cuts did not have to go in any specific order.

11:28...get a life...you need to move on. Only 5 people signed this thing and you are probably #'s 1-4. I am glad we have Mr. Twilley at Pemberton. He knows how to treat his staff right and know education.

Move on...don't beat a dead horse.

Anonymous said...

3:23pm You are one angry person.

Anonymous said...

3:32

Not angry...just tired of spoiled rotten yuppies that have nothing better to do than stay at home and complain about the schools. The person who started this petition has no clue what it takes to run a school. He/she is probably one who didn't get their yuppie way like Scott Thorpe allowed them to do in the past. In business, this would never happen...could you see a petition to oust Jim Perdue...I think not!

Anonymous said...

Jim Perdue is self made...not self proclaimed!

I am sure Perdue would be offended by using Twilley as a comparison.