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Sheriff's deputy pitches SRO role to Southerland board; county approval, contract remain
Summary
Deputy Brett Schmid told the board he has NASRO training and K‑9 experience and intends to focus on prevention, staff training and student engagement if approved as the district’s school resource officer; county‑commissioner approval and a contract are still needed.
Brett Schmid, a deputy with the sheriff’s office, introduced himself to the Southerland Public Schools Board of Education as a candidate for the district’s school resource officer post, describing his training and plans for the role.
Schmid said he attended NASRO basic SRO training, a 40‑hour program he described as the standard for SROs, and highlighted experience on patrol and as a K‑9 handler. He said the SRO role should be proactive and educational rather than solely reactive: “I’m not going to ever sit in an office and wait for something bad to happen,” Schmid said, adding that an SRO should engage with students in classrooms and hallways and offer presentations on topics such as substance use, cyber safety and trafficking.
Schmid said his K‑9 currently is trained on marijuana, methamphetamine, heroin and cocaine and that he is exploring therapy‑dog certification for the animal to support student outreach. He also offered to provide staff training on identifying new vaping devices and other concealed paraphernalia and to lead student programs about social media and online safety.
Board members asked about the timing and approvals required to begin the assignment. Schmid said the start depends on approval by the county commissioners and finalizing a contract, and that training and staff briefings can begin before the formal start date. He said the district could start staff discussions about the SRO role and that the NASRO curriculum and additional in‑house sessions would be used to set expectations for staff interactions with an SRO.
The board did not take a formal vote on the SRO during this meeting; board members thanked Schmid and noted the need for county approval and contractual steps before the candidate begins duties.
What happens next: staff and board members will coordinate with the sheriff’s office and county commissioners to finalize the contract and schedule any required county approval.
