Washington Unified presents preliminary SRO engagement timeline, schedules surveys and town halls

Washington Unified School District trustees reviewed a preliminary timeline on Dec. 17 for a potential School Resource Officer (SRO) collaboration with the West Sacramento Police Department (WSPD), with staff proposing community surveys and engagement sessions before the board takes up recommendations.

Dr. Jay Burns, the district’s director of special programs and student services, told the board the plan calls for family and staff surveys between late January and mid-February 2025, focused engagement sessions and two town halls (a first in late March and a second after spring break), analysis of feedback by mid-May, and presentation of recommendations to the Governing Board in June 2025. Burns described the timeline as preliminary and said staff would coordinate survey content with WSPD and a safety consultant to facilitate community sessions.

The presentation estimated initial funding for SRO services at roughly $280,000 to $377,000 and said the district will request a city partnership and a letter of intent to the West Sacramento City Council in February 2025. Superintendent Dr. Hildreth said he and district staff have discussed the proposal with Chief Strange and city officials; he added that the city council would need to decide whether to share costs and that WSPD indicated it is unlikely to have a dedicated officer assigned to Washington Unified for the 2025–26 school year because of department capacity and recruitment timelines.

Parent Ruth Pagano Tern, speaking during public comment, said she supports collaborating with WSPD and urged the district to craft survey questions that are clear to parents, staff and students. "As a parent, I am in complete support of the collaboration with the PD," she said, and asked the district to explain the program’s role and timeline plainly so the community can give informed feedback.

Trustees pressed staff on survey design, community outreach and alternatives if students or families express opposition. Several trustees recommended smaller, neighborhood-focused listening sessions and the formation of a task force that would include parents, students, teachers and community members to help shape questions and ensure translations and accessibility. Student board member Mariana Gutierrez asked how student feedback would be used; Burns said all feedback would be presented to the board before any decision.

Trustees also raised funding questions. Dr. Hildreth said staff will ask the city whether it would consider paying half the cost — an arrangement used in the past — but noted that Measure O bond priorities and other budget constraints will factor into decisions. "We might be able to think about some things differently, but in terms of a true position ready to go, that's highly unlikely per Chief Strange," he told the board.

Staff emphasized the process is designed to be transparent: draft surveys will be reviewed with parents, students and community advisors before distribution, engagement sessions will be facilitated by a safety consultant to ensure best-practice discussion, and updates will be shared by email and district communications throughout the process. Trustees asked staff to consider moving the date for presenting community feedback back to the board from June to an earlier date while school is still in session, if feasible.

The board did not take formal action on the SRO timeline; staff described the item as informational and said the next steps are to finalize survey content, coordinate logistics with WSPD and begin stakeholder engagement in early 2025.