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The Honolulu Police Department and state Department of Education have launched Oahu’s first formal school resource officer (SRO) pilot program, placing uniformed officers at Waianae, Kapolei and Kaimuki high schools through the current school year. Goals are lofty — to change school cultures and prioritize positive social and academic achievements — but can be attained if HPD and the officers, along with students, parents and educators, demonstrate sustained commitment and adopt an open, flexible approach.
The mission, according to both HPD and the DOE, is to model and encourage mentorship, relationship-building and campus safety, rather than enforce discipline or mete out punishments. Advocates call it “productive engagement”: real-time, positive interaction with students and school communities, building trust so that both police and students can learn from each other.
The goal is to improve school culture by prioritizing more positive achievements, social and academic. Community members have asked for such programs as schools struggle with issues of youth violence, bullying and crime. But expectations can be dashed if officers don’t model engagement or aren’t easily accessible, school personnel don’t step up to facilitate interactions, or students feel threatened or suspicious — and it’s the adults’ responsibility to make this work.
The pilot runs through the end of this school year, and if successful, HPD and DOE will jointly evaluate its impact and efficiency — and begin looking for more funding to cover operating costs and potential expansion. That’s where Honolulu’s taxpayers will likely also be called on for support and input.
The resource officer placement isn’t pre-packaged; there is no single-minded focus such as drug use or attendance. And officers aren’t meant to inspire fear of punishment. Instead, HPD interim chief Rade Vanic said, “The focus is simple — build relationships, earn trust and make sure officers on campus are there to mentor our students.”According to Vanic, the pilot program has been designed thoughtfully and “collaboratively,” with input from school leaders and HPD.
Officially, police involvement will be limited to legitimate safety or criminal concerns. On a daily basis, it’s expected that officer involvement will largely take place casually, as students approach them out of curiosity or with a problem.
Because this is a trial program, HPD chose to monitor experience in different regions of the island. The schools were chosen jointly, with Waianae and Kaimuki at the west and east, and Kapolei somewhat central, drawing on officers eager to work at the locations. Achieving success with the dispersed programs also could help recruit future officers.
While police officers’ presence can be intimidating to kids who haven’t had positive interactions with officers before, that’s one issue that these resource officers are there to address: Getting to know kids, teachers, parents — members of the community — and cultivating mutual respect.
Respect must be earned, of course — and in these pilot programs, HPD’s first-line resource officers have expectations to meet. As Honolulu’s front-line defenders of residents’ safety, these officers are expected to encourage trust and communication, and to help reduce violence, criminal activity and bullying, among other goals.
In turn, school communities must draw from lessons learned to encourage and support open communication, and commit to ever-higher goals for productive cooperation and academic achievement.
If the program works at alpha levels, students and their families, teachers and neighboring residents will not only benefit from a safer, more respectful school day — but also be motivated to expand this cooperative, engaged model into widening community circles, for the benefit of all.
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