The Stuart Police Department seeks to build relationships and help foster the development of West Central Valley students through a school resource officer program.

Police Chief Dave Reha and Officer Katie Guisinger spoke at the recent West Central Valley School Board meeting about the school resource officer class that was held this month at the high school. Reha said it was the largest class the National Association of School Resource Officers had ever taught in Iowa, and because of the number of officers registered, Reha and Guisinger were able to enroll in the course for free and were certified. Reha explained to the Board the purpose of this position, “I know in a lot of areas people assume that school resource officers are there to kind of be the enforcer or the person that enforces the policy and rules, and that’s really not the goal. It’s more to build a relationship with the kids and kind of build that trust between law enforcement and the students, also for the staff too.”

Reha said being a school resource officer would include classroom guest speakers, being an informal mentor to students, and providing safety training to students and staff. Reha noted they’d like to serve in every building of the district, so they can start those relationships early, as all students will eventually be attending school in Stuart. Guisinger said she hopes to progress with a criminal justice club she started from the last career fair, and she’d like to get more school resource officer courses taught in Stuart. The Board agreed to draft a 28E agreement between the district and the police department, which will be presented in September. If approved, the district would pay a portion of the officer’s salary to the City.