RUMFORD (NEWS CENTER Maine) - In response to the shootings in Florida, educators throughout Maine are exploring ways to make their schools safer.
Some schools have a police officer walking the halls every day. Now some community members in the Rumford and Mexico area are pushing for officers in their schools.
A community meeting was held Thursday evening to discuss the issue and to hear more about what people think will make students feel safer in their schools.
Roland Bousquet and Gary Dolloff no longer have children in the RSU 10 system. But they feel very strongly, that as members of this community, they continue to support young people here.
“We want our children to get the best possible education we can. In order to do that, they have to feel secure and comfortable in the school,” said Bousquet.
They have been the driving force behind getting a school resource officer inside Mountain Valley High School.
“I think it’s time they have someone in there who can talk to the kids, be around the kids, get their trust and if someone knows anything, they may go to that resource officer,” said Dolloff.
As a local sports coach and director of the community center, Dolloff deals with students every day.
“It’s not just the teacher's job or the school board's job. It’s the communities job to take care of its kids. That’s my big belief,” he said.
Mountain Valley's Principal appreciates the two men’s efforts.
“It’s very encouraging anytime the community wants to help out the school and look to solve problems, to help us solve problems within the school,” said principal Matt Gilbert.
Gilbert says bringing in a school resource officer has come up before, but never moved forward over concerns about funding and having an armed officer in school. But in the wake of the Florida tragedy, it's being revisited.
"I think anytime there’s an incident like that, we have a lot more of an urgency to get that done. We have looked at that a couple of different times,” he said.
The issue has been brought to the school board and officials are now exploring getting a grant to fund it. Dolloff and Bousquet are hoping the community supports this effort because they say it’s everyone responsibility to make sure the children here feel safe.
“Not just go to the football games and go rah, rah, rah. You have to also be there when they need you and it doesn’t mean just the parents,” Bousquet said.
No agency keeps a list of how many schools or communities have school resource officers, but here are how some of them handle it.
Isle does not have one. In PresqueAugusta has two. One at the high school, while the other rotates between four elementary schools. Bangor has one, mainly at the high school, but who also spends time at other schools during the week. Sanford there’s one at the high school and one at the junior high.