Tag: campussafety
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I’ve written and spoken about this before, but I plan on spending time collecting data on the topic for a future presentation. Think about it like this – As a SSO, SRO, or school/campus security officer, you may have to sprint across a campus then engage a deadly threat and be responsible for every round that leaves your firearm. To do this, you have to have a certain amount of both tactical proficiency and cardiovascular fitness. Remember – There’s security, and there’s the illusion of security. Which one are you providing? As a client, parent, or student, which one are you paying for?
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Yesterday, I spent some time reading to some of our 3rd grade students during library. One reason why I prefer the SRO/SSO concept over contract armed security is because of the SRO/SSO “Triad.” In addition to enforcement or security, the other aspects of the triad are “educator” and “counselor/mentor.” Positive relationship building is an important part of school safety and security.
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At SJS, the 7th & 8th grade P.E. classes are helping me prepare for my physical fitness test. Today’s challenge was a plank challenge. Appropriate physical fitness for school safety and security personnel is extremely important to me. It goes hand in hand with officer presence, and studies and after action reports have shown that appropriate officer presence is the number one deterrent in combating intruders, as well as the most cost effective. Coming from law enforcement, a lot of people may not realize that, unless you are in a specialized unit like SWAT or special operations, the fitness test that one takes to become a law enforcement officer, is the last one that they take. I have always found this problematic, so when I got hired on at St. Jude, I wrote an annual fitness test into our SSO policy. I can say, with confidence, that St. Jude School is the only school in the Chattanooga area (public or private) that has an on-going fitness standard for their SSO or school security personnel. The three students pictured received a SSO challenge coin for making it to the four minute mark with me.
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After serving in the military, and working in law enforcement and as an EMT, I truly believe that school safety is my calling and vocation, and I am thankful for my experience in those other fields because they led me here and gave me tools that I can use in my current field. There are times when this job isn’t easy. As a School Safety Officer (SSO), you work in a school, but you’re not necessarily part of the tribe. You’re not an educator., and sometimes, they’ll let you know it. While, at my current school, I will say that I have a great working relationship with the principal and most of the staff, that’s not always been the case at some of the other schools I’ve worked at or consulted for. Remember – SSO’s are outsiders. A necessary evil for some, and it can be tiresome navigating office and institutional politics, as well as egos, but when you truly know your Why, you can easily put up with any Who or How.
As an SSO, my Why is the school’s parents and students, and at times, their appreciation will manifest as little things. Little things that mean so much to me.
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The Standard Response Protocol and the use of plain language is important when it comes to intruder and other school safety drills. It can still be done with age-appropriate education.
When I was hired to develop the SSO and school safety program at St. Jude, one thing that was extremely important to me was to use plain language when conducting intruder drills, to include the use of the word, “lockdown.” At the same time, making students, especially young students, comfortable and unafraid is equally important. When our elementary level students hear the word “lockdown,” that means it’s time for them to play a game of Quite as a Mouse!
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To my fellow law enforcement and security professionals, I am working on an article, and I am looking for data. My question – Does your law enforcement agency, or security company, require an ongoing physical fitness standard (Example: Yearly Physical Fitness Test) as a condition of continued employment? Feel free to contact me at aaron@aaronyeargan.com
– Aaron
Aaron Yeargan - Speaker & Security Consultant 