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Sheriff proposes county-run Class 3 school resource officer training to staff elementary schools
Summary
A county law enforcement leader proposed a locally run Class 3 School Resource Officer training program to prepare SROs in eight weeks so more elementary schools can be staffed; county and municipal agencies signaled support for recruitment of retirees and shared training.
At the Sept. 18 meeting the committee heard a proposal to create a locally run Class 3 School Resource Officer (SRO) training syllabus that county and municipal agencies could use to staff elementary schools.
The proponent described Class 3 as a local, county-based law-enforcement designation designed to reduce the barriers of the 12‑week Class 1 academy in Columbia by offering eight weeks of local training with state training-council blessing. The program would be a uniform, armed law-enforcement position with arrest powers limited to assignments on school grounds.
"We would like to start our first class in June," the proponent said, describing a program that would allow recruits — including retired military and retired teachers — to train locally, remain home for family schedules and begin deployment when the school year starts. He said the county had identified openings across agencies and that pay was expected to start around $45,000.
Multiple county and municipal officials expressed support. One municipal law-enforcement official said the program should help staff elementary schools that currently lack Class 3 or higher officers and praised the plan to train agencies together to create a cross-jurisdictional network.
The committee discussed outreach and application pathways: staff were asked to publish program details on county and municipal web pages and to coordinate with the South Carolina Training Council and local recruiters. The proponent said the syllabus had been sent to the academy that trains state law enforcement and had the council's approval.
Next steps: staff will publish program information, accept applications and return to the committee with implementation details and recruitment metrics as the application window opens.
