Sean C. Morgan
Of The New Era
New School Resource Officer John Trahan hasn’t been able to settle into a real routine yet, but after a month on the job, things are just starting to slow down a little.
It’s been busy, but he hasn’t had any big calls to deal with, he said.
“It’s more jumping up and dealing with people who aren’t supposed to be on the property” and other minor issues, Trahan said
“I don’t have a routine yet,” he said. “I’m still trying to get in with the flow. You’re constantly doing something. If I get to my office and sit down, something seems to come up.”
It’s only just now starting to slow down a little, and “I’m starting to find more time to venture off to the other schools now,” he said.
Among his activities, he has met with counselors, who are interested in his opinion on different situations, and with students, as well as working with the assistant principals and sometimes sitting in with principals while they talk with a student.
He has been to Sweet Home Junior High and all three elementary schools in Sweet Home, Oak Heights, Foster and Hawthorne, he said, but he hasn’t been able to spend much time in those schools yet.
He has gone out with the local truancy officer, Anne Plagman.
“I try to go over to Speedee Mart and make sure kids aren’t smoking and leaving their garbage all over the ground,” he said.
The streets and parking lots around the high school appear to be staying clean this year.
The litter problem was a big issue for the School Board in the 2005-06 school year. With the possibility of closing the high school campus during lunch looming and administrators stressing this to the students, the problem improved last year.
Trahan credits the assistant principals with helping to maintain a watch on student activities.
Assistant Principal Dave Goetz has positioned himself in the area in front of the high school, Trahan said, while Assistant Principal Brad Sperry is out in the back lot keeping an eye on things.
Staff and administrators are continually telling students to respect themselves and the community, Goetz said, and the students are doing that.
Now, the Boys and Girls Club is contacting him to get him involved in its programs, and “I’m just now getting teachers requesting my presence (as a guest speaker),” he said.
Trahan doesn’t deal with things like skipping, tardiness or “hall monitor” type issues – the non-criminal discipline issues, he said.
“I do investigate quite a bit of things that turn out not to be criminal.”
Most of what he’s doing doesn’t require him to pull a number and open a case, he said.
Trahan, the school and local officers have had a number of minor in possession of tobacco citations, he said. Most of those have come from school officials and other officers in the area at lunch time, but it does seem like more citations have been issued this year although he didn’t have the numbers available.
Trahan said he has had a positive reception, he said, and he’s enjoying the new job.
“If I can get into the groove of everything, more of a routine, it’s going to be even better. I’m loving it. I’m loving interacting with the kids.”
Student Shaniqa Lewis said she doesn’t mind having a cop on campus. “It saves a lot of people from getting in trouble,” and it helps keep the school safe, said Lewis, a sophomore.
Goetz said all the feedback he’s gotten from students and parents has been positive.
“Students seem to be comfortable that he’s here,” Goetz said. “For the little bit of recognition about us having an school resource officer, the community seems to be knowledgeable about having him here.”
It’s way too early to see a noticeable impact outside of the encouraging reaction of the students and community, Goetz said. “The whole idea behind him being here is presence alone. Just him being here, walking the halls, talking to the students has been a positive.”
Among all of the other schools he has been associated with, this is the fourth with a resource officer, Goetz said. In every case, the position has been a positive part of the school, and he expects that to continue.
“It’s just nice having that extra set of eyes helping us look out for the students and staff,” he said.
Trahan said he has gotten some insight into how the school works, and he’s noticed that school administrators are constantly working hard – always busy.
“I would not want to be a high school administrator,” he said.