School resource officers have been in the Syracuse City School District for years, but many say it's time for them to go.

What You Need To Know

  • The Syracuse City School District BOE met Tuesday to discuss the future of SROs in schoo

  • Many board members agree their roles need to be adjusted, and they must be held accountable

  • However, protesters say it's time to remove the SROs and hire more counselors to help students

The Board of Education discussed the future of SROs at a meeting Tuesday.

Most members agree officers need to be held accountable and their roles should be revised.

They sent out a survey to high school students, families and staff members, but they're still waiting to hear back from more students.

Local advocacy groups including Rebirth SYR, Cuse Youth BLM, Syracuse Police Accountability and Reform Coalition and RAHA are disappointed in their response.

They say the board must follow the New York State Law Section 2801-A10 on School Safety Plans, which states schools should define the roles of law enforcement and how they should respond to student misconduct. It also requires them to develop a contract with stakeholder input including community members.

The organizations also have a petition of 700 students and community members who have concerns about SROs.

Instead, they want funds to go towards more counselors and teacher assistants.

"They definitely are intimidating,” said Hasahn Bloodworth, the Rebirth SYR co-founder. “That's not where kids want to be. Kids don't to be in school and they don't want to be intimidated and they don't want to be scared. Put the police where they belong, and that's on the streets fighting crime, not in schools. It's not a prison."

"It's not just as simple as remove or remain,” said Katie Sojewicz, the Syracuse City School District Board of Education president. “We recognize there are issues, real significant issues. We also recognize we've been talking about this for a long time and we need to do things about it, regardless if SROs remain or are removed."

Sojewicz also agrees there should be more counselors. They discussed a resolution that would add 4 additional positions.

The board and superintendent are expected to speak with Mayor Ben Walsh about SROs the first week of August.