NCJ Number
201686
Journal
International Journal of Police Science & Management Volume: 5 Issue: 2 Dated: Summer 2003 Pages: 129-142
Date Published
2003
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This article examines the role of school-based police officers, based on comparative research that has assessed police roles in schools in the United Kingdom and the United States.
Abstract
The research conducted in the United Kingdom extended over 1 year at a secondary school in London and was essentially based on an action-research methodology. The research used a variety of data-collection methods, including surveys of staff and pupils as well as focus groups and semistructured interviews. The research conducted in the United States focused on several schools in one school district and the work of the officers in the Lakewood Police Department (Colorado). The research was undertaken in the role of observational evaluator and included surveying the staff and pupils as well as the school officers, their supervisors, and fellow patrol officers, as well as a sample of parents, members of the community, and other support agencies. In the United Kingdom, a pilot program was initiated in London that involved the deployment of a number of uniformed police officers on a full-time basis in local secondary schools. Although the evaluation of the pilot program has not been completed, there is evidence that school officers have been effective in reducing truancy and bullying; providing student education pertinent to crime prevention; reducing the fear of crime among students, school staff, and parents; and in reducing youth crime. This article concludes with suggestions for improving the role of school officers in the areas of law enforcement, counseling, and teaching. 4 notes, 28 references, and appended excerpts from the training manual on community oriented policing services published by the National School Safety Center