Sheriff Tim Cameron will have a deputy at every public
school in St. Mary’s County for the first day of school and will continue a
high-visibility presence for the rest of the school year.
As more than 18,000 public school students return to school
on Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2018, the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office Deputies will
be at all 28 public schools to ensure a safe and secure learning environment.
There will also be increased patrols around public and
private schools in St. Mary’s County through a Safety and Security Overtime
initiative. A grant has been submitted to the federal Community Oriented
Policing Program and is pending approval to support continuation of this
program throughout the school year.
The Adopt a School program continues between St. Mary’s
County Public Schools and the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office. Through this
partnership, deputies volunteer to adopt and work with a particular elementary
school assisting students and staff with school security concerns, mentoring of
students and school emergency response planning.
There are five School Resource Officers in St. Mary’s
County. Three are assigned to Chopticon High School, Great Mills High School
and Leonardtown High School. There are also two School Resource Officers for
the county’s four public middle schools.
Cpl. Jaime Davis is the School Resource Officer for
Leonardtown Middle School and Margaret Brent Middle School. DFC David Lawrence
is the School Resource Officer for Esperanza Middle School and Spring Ridge
Middle School.
All five School Resource Officers are also teaching the DARE
program as well.
“The safety of students and children in St. Mary’s County is
my first priority,” Sheriff Tim Cameron said. “The men and women of the
Sheriff’s Office are conducting an all-out effort to make sure that students
returning to classes feel safe on their first day of school.”
“While the Sheriff’s Office can’t sustain manning a deputy
at every public school for a prolonged period of time, I want both students and
their parents to feel confident that their schools are a safe and secure
environment to learn in every day, throughout the school year,” the Sheriff
said.
Throughout the school year, parents are also encouraged to
ensure that their children do not bring any contraband items to school.
For official news and information, follow the St. Mary’s
County Sheriff’s Office on Twitter at @firstsheriff.
This release was
issued in cooperation with St. Mary’s County Public Schools.
