Residents ask Saugerties school board to reinstate SRO Travis Winchell after disciplinary incident

More than 650 people signed a petition asking the Saugerties Central School District Board to reinstate School Resource Officer Travis Winchell at the high school, residents said at the board’s June 10 meeting.

The request came during the meeting’s public comment period, when residents were permitted to speak on any topic. Allison, identified in the record only by her first name, read a petition letter representing “over 650 concerned petitioners” and asked the board and the superintendent to return Officer Winchell to his prior assignment.

The petition letter said Officer Winchell had worked in the district eight years and "earned the trust and respect of our students, the staff, and these families," and that the SRO’s role was to support safe resolutions when situations escalated. Allison said the community had not received "clear or official communication from the district" about a recent disciplinary incident involving Winchell and a student and said that lack of information had fostered speculation and distrust.

A second public commenter, Jillian Lopez, identified herself as a Saugerties High School alumna (class of 2023) and a current college student. Lopez said Winchell had personally helped her return to schoolwork during COVID-related shutdowns, providing physical space and academic support and spending his own money on occasional lunches for students who used the lobby to keep up with remote classes. "Officer Travis Winchell goes above and beyond in every part of his duty," Lopez said, describing Winchell’s support as critical to her staying in school and graduating.

Speakers stressed that they understand confidential student matters may limit what the district can say about personnel or disciplinary details, but they pressed for more transparency about any change to the SRO assignment. The petition letter urged the superintendent and the board to clarify whether disciplinary actions against the student had been taken under the district’s code of conduct, and whether removal or reassignment of an SRO had occurred.

The public comment period did not produce a board response or a motion related to the SRO position. The board’s earlier remarks about the public comment rules reiterated that the session is for comments only, not for questions-and-answers; the board said it would record questions raised and follow up where appropriate, while preserving confidentiality for personnel or student matters.

No district official provided additional detail about the alleged incident at the time public comments concluded, and no board action on the SRO assignment was recorded in the meeting minutes.