School Resource Deputy

School Resource Deputy

A School Resource Deputy (SRD) is a law enforcement officer assigned to an elementary, middle, or high school. The SRD works with the administration, educators, and counselors to make our schools safe.

Following the tragic shooting at the Parkland High School on February 14th, 2018, the Florida legislature mandated that a School Resource Deputy, Safe Schools Officer, or School Guardian be placed at every public school in Florida.

In collaboration with the Dixie District School Superintendent and the Sheriff’s Office, we agreed to place a School Resource Deputy in each of the district’s schools. 

The main goal of the SRD is to provide a safe educational environment, prevent juvenile delinquency, and promote positive relations between youth and law enforcement. The SRD is a liaison between the Sheriff’s Office and the School District.

The SRD position encompasses three major components that allow the SRD to achieve this goal: law enforcement, education, and counseling. These three components enable the SRD to approach law enforcement proactively. SRDs are not just “cops” on campus. SRDs provide all law enforcement duties on their campus. They educate the students by teaching law-related classes and other related subjects in the classrooms and counsel students and parents on various topics.

The SRD becomes a positive role model in the students’ lives. The intent is that the positive experiences students have with the SRD will bridge the gap between juveniles and law enforcement and, in doing so, help prevent juvenile crime. In addition to being an active, high-profile law enforcement officer, the SRD is a resource for students, parents, guardians, teachers, and administration regarding law issues. Another duty of the SRD is linking to other service agencies that provide preventive and counseling services within the school district. Working with the Principal in each school, the SRD assists with finding solutions to problems afflicting today’s school-age children.

The SRD is a proactive approach to dealing with the pressures that today’s youth have to confront. This includes alcohol, drugs, tobacco, and peer pressure. These situations are not only in the schools but in the community as well. The approach of addressing these issues only in the school or only in the community has not been entirely practical. Traditionally, police and schools did not interact until one called upon the other.

The Dixie County School District and the Dixie County Sheriff’s Office are working together to confront the problems our students now face; by addressing these issues together and proactively, we become increasingly influential.