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Parent urges answers after school resource officer resigns; district says officer employed by police
Summary
At the Oct. 9 Wayne Board of Education meeting, parent Victoria Armis said School Resource Officer Pablo Mandalo resigned amid rumors and community concern; the superintendent said the officer is employed by the Wayne Police Department and the district has limited authority to disclose personnel details.
A Wayne parent told the Board of Education on Oct. 9 that the resignation of School Resource Officer Pablo Mandalo has left families upset and seeking answers.
"He knew all of our children's names... He resigned over pettiness," Victoria Armis said, describing Mandalo as someone who "high-fived every child, gave them hugs, loved them unconditionally." Armis urged the district to look into the circumstances surrounding the departure and asked whether the board could take action.
The superintendent responded that the SRO was not a district employee and the district had been told only that "he's not employed anymore with us. they legally they can't tell us why because he's not our employee, he's their employee." The superintendent said the district has a contract with the Wayne Police Department that places the police department in control of personnel decisions for officers assigned as SROs and said the district will seek a shared-services conversation when the contract is renegotiated next year.
Board members said they sympathize with parents and praised the departed officer's work, but cautioned the board could not discuss personnel matters in public. One board member suggested the district's shared-services committee meet with the police department to "have a sit down chat" about the arrangement.
The public commenter also said that in practice the district now often relies on rotating police officers for daily coverage after the SRO's departure and that parents perceive those rotating officers as less connected to students than the former SRO.
No formal action or vote was taken at the meeting; the board said its options are limited because the SRO is employed by the police department rather than the school district.
