School Resource Officers Return to Concord

The Concord City Council is excited to announce the return of the School Resource Officer (SRO) program, beginning in fall 2024. The MDUSD School Superintendent and school staff are also excited and supportive of the return of the program.

The Concord Police Department has historically run a successful SRO program off and on since the mid-1990s. The most recent program ended in 2020 when the Mt. Diablo Unified School District (MDUSD) discontinued funding for the program, and the City could not afford the cost of the full program due to City budget constraints at that time.

The re-established program will have two officers assigned as School Resource Officers. One of the two positions is a position added to the City budget, bringing sworn staffing levels in Concord up to 140 positions. The other position represents a reassignment of an existing officer to this specialty assignment.

The SRO program will allow assigned officers to direct attention and resources where needed based on safety trends, calls for service, campus disputes, gang activity, and other emerging issues. The SRO officers will build relationships with students, their parents, teachers, and administrators on campus, and will also serve as a liaison connecting youth in need of behavioral health crisis support and intervention to resources, including to the Contra Costa County A3 (Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime) program and the Seneca Center.

MDUSD high school staff will be invited to participate in the selection process of the officers. Once selected, the officers will receive specialized training to maintain and foster a collaborative working relationship with key stakeholders. The officers will wear an informal police uniform (PD polo shirt and khakis) and will drive non-patrol hybrid police vehicles. They will routinely be on-site at our public high schools but will not have dedicated offices while on campus.

When they are not actively working on campuses, the officers will be supporting the Community Impact Unit citywide.

The new officer position is being funded from sources other than the General Fund; specifically, it will be funded with Cannabis Community Benefit and Opioid Settlement dollars.

(This article was originally published in the Summer 2024 City News & Activity Guide.)