In an effort to keep their students and staff as safe as possible, a couple of Rensselaer County school districts are welcoming two new school resource officers.

Hoosick Valley and Hoosick Falls schools districts proudly announced Wednesday the additions of officers Andy Moran and Eric Manny.

Hoosick Falls Superintendent Kenneth Facin says February’s mass shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, ignited his district’s urgency for a school resource officer.

Rensselaer County Sheriff Patrick Russo says Hoosick Falls Central Schools’ location in a rural part of the county means response time to an emergency could be longer than for other schools.

He says it’s one of many reasons the need for an SRO is so significant.

“I think it’s good they get to see a different side of the police,” said Russo. “They see us all the time arresting people, now they’ll get to see us interacting with the community.”