School resource officers won’t be at certain Kent high schools in 2024-25

Both Kentwood and Kentlake high schools will not have school resource officers (SROs) next year, despite the growing advocacy for that role to return throughout many school districts in Washington.

The staffing shortage within the King County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) has made the office too thin to divert officers to be on campuses consistently. All SROs in unincorporated King County are to be redeployed back to patrol.

“It’s a staffing problem,” KCSO spokesperson Brandyn Hull told KIRO Newsradio on Thursday. “We had to redeploy our deputies. Priorities are 911 calls and it’s really a staffing thing.”

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However, things are looking up. KCSO is seeing a surge in recruiting and applications.

“In 2023, we had about 120 vacancies and now we’re down to 64,” Hull said. “And our applications are up about 50%. Last year we had about ten a week and this year it’s more like 20 a week. So, it’s doubled. We hope to have SROs back in the schools in time for the 2025-2026 school year.”

The Kent School District — which houses Kentwood and Kentlake high schools — has used KCSO in the past to provide a deputy at each of the district’s schools. The Kent Police Department (KPD) provides officers at schools within city limits after the Kent School Board approved a contract extension with KPD to do so, but for schools outside of city limits, the sheriff’s office is responsible for SROs on campus.

The district has security officers on staff but they are not trained police officers.

The surge in SROs returning to campuses

Seattle Interim Chief of Police Sue Rahr has advocated for SROs to return to schools, claiming they create a safer environment for students.

“We want to become part of the school staff,” Rahr told FOX 13. “We want to be there in a way that helps students feel safe, not intimidated.”

In 2020, the Seattle School Board removed SROs from campuses, citing police brutality and tensions with the public and police happening across the country. But since the tragic shooting at Garfield High School, the debate over SROs returning to schools has been reignited.

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“We are interested in sitting down with students, staff and other school representatives to co-create a job description for what a School Resource Officer could do in schools,” Rahr said, according to FOX 13. “The process to design what an SRO’s duties will be on campuses will be inclusive. The role will not be enforcement-focused and instead, will be created to foster relationship-building and communication. This approach is the most effective way to prevent incidents on campus, as research shows an SRO relationship with students helps give an early warning.”

At the end of the 2019–2020 school year, prior to the summer of 2020 and the nationwide growth in resistance against police, there were approximately 23,400 SROs in the U.S., according to a November 2023 report published by the Bureau of Justice Statistics of the U.S. Department of Justice.

While studies and research remain inconclusive regarding the effectiveness of SROs on campus, researchers at Canada’s Carleton University conducted a two-year study of an SRO program in the Regional Municipality of Peel. The study found that for every dollar invested in the program, a minimum of $11.13 of social and economic value was created. Property damage, student injuries and 911 calls all dropped with the presence of SROs on campus.

Frank Sumrall is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read his stories here and you can email him here.

James Lynch is a reporter at KIRO Newsradio. You can read more of James’ stories here. Follow James on X, or email him here.