HSD is working on school safety plan forum
By Terry Murry on Thursday, December 23rd, 2021 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
HERMISTON – The nationwide threat of school violence that appeared on social media last week had school districts throughout the U.S. reacting by increasing the presence of law enforcement. While that might be a problem in some Oregon school districts, it isn’t in Hermiston. Superintendent Tricia Mooney watched as districts pulled away from local law enforcement and canceled school resource officer programs.
“Hermiston actually increased our school resource officer presence at that time,” she said. “We have three resource officers in Hermiston. One at the elementary schools, one at the middle level and one at the high school.”
Mooney said both the students and parents feel an increased sense of safety due to police working closely with the schools. The Hermiston Police Department also played a big role in creating the district’s school safety plan. When classes resume in 2022, Mooney plans to fill parents in on the plan and give them a chance to ask questions.
“We are going to do a community forum where we can talk about what are our safety procedures, what do things mean, and what’s the process when there is a threat,” she said.
