Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Safety topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Dorchester School District 2 authorizes superintendent to apply for new proprietary security business license
Summary
At its May 19 meeting the Dorchester School District 2 board voted 6–0 (1 absent) to authorize Superintendent Doherty to apply for a proprietary security business license under recently enacted state legislation; the district plans SLED-approved training and background checks for district security staff and said SROs will remain in schools.
The Dorchester School District 2 Board of Trustees on May 19 voted to authorize Superintendent Doherty to apply for a proprietary security business license under legislation signed May 12, 2025 requiring school districts that use security officers who are not school resource officers to hold such a license.
District leaders told the board the license will allow the district to certify and oversee its own security staff, require South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED)–approved training and background checks for individual officers, and — in limited circumstances described by staff — allow those security employees arrest authority on campus. Superintendent Doherty emphasized that the new licensed security positions are intended to augment, not replace, sworn SROs who will remain assigned to schools.
District staff said the statute is effective immediately and that the board vote authorizes the superintendent to be the district's applicant so the district can begin the licensing process and enroll staff in required training. A motion to grant that authority was made by Mr. Guthrie and seconded by Ms. Bates; the board recorded the motion as carrying, 6 in favor, 1 absent.
Board members asked several operational questions before the vote, including whether the license is district-level or individual-level (staff said the district will hold the business license while individual security employees will obtain required individual certifications under that umbrella). Officials said some fee information was still being finalized with SLED; staff told the board an early estimate for the initial fee was about $100, and that individual officers will face recurring recertification fees once the program is established.
District presenters said the change will allow the district to recruit and vet candidates more directly than when contracting through private security firms, and that many existing district security staff are former law enforcement, military or first responders. The district also told the board it expects SLED to maintain training and firearm certification records, which staff said should reduce district administrative burden and may reduce some liability risk by centralizing recertification records at the state level.
Board members approved the motion in open session; the vote was announced as "Motion carries 6 in favor, 1 absent."
