Board presses for clarity on SRO contract and expands financial-audit plans

During board comments members pressed administration on the status of the SRO (school resource officer) contract with the sheriff’s office and on maintaining SRO coverage at schools. One board member said consistently, "we need 12 SROs consistently" and sought assurance the district would retain coverage at all schools. Administration said negotiations are ongoing, that the district is clarifying expectations in the contract and that the district is not the employer of SROs and therefore does not pay overtime for officers; administration committed to providing a written update to the board.

Separately, administration reported it has engaged the district’s audit firm to perform an expanded interim review during the finance transition and has arranged third‑party mentoring support for the interim finance officer. The superintendent said the audit firm will increase sample sizes, provide a special report to the board and that a reputable consultant will provide mentoring and finance‑officer review. The administration described the goal as providing both a deeper interim audit and ongoing practitioner support to help the district through staffing and accounting transitions.

Board members asked for transparency on how SROs are funded and who covers specific costs. Administration noted some funding restrictions for state and federal sources and said local dollars would be used where required. Administration committed to providing more detail at the January meeting, including comparisons from other districts about how they structured similar arrangements.

Next steps: administration will report back with a written SRO-contract update and timelines for the audit work and consultant support.