Recently I read an article regarding Michigan lawmakers pushing for more law enforcement
officers in schools. Following the Oxford High School shooting in November the state House has
approved an increase in grant money to hire school resource officers. The House has increased
the budget for school resource officers from $10 million to $50 million. It is now before the
Senate pending their approval.

Supporters of having trained, armed, and licensed law enforcement personnel present in and
available to our school systems, believe they are important to developing rapport between the
students, their parents, the school staff, and the law enforcement agency they represent. The
officer on deputy is also crucial in preventing violent acts and offer a sense of security to
everyone involved in the school system.

Those who are against having SROs in schools feel their presence may escalate situations and
on occasion criminalizes students’ behavior that shouldn’t be. The opinion of those advocating
against SRO is that they increase the chances of a child ending up in the criminal justice system
because of a theft, fight, or worse and that is in my opinion completely flawed.

In the summer of 2020, while campaigning to be Sheriff, I spoke to a citizen, who wanted to get
my views on several political stances. One of these being his view and opinion on the failure of
our public school system to their students. I took this personally as a former SRO, and at that
time a Big Rapids Public Schools Board member. The problem we, as a society, are seeing with
a small segment of our school children is not the system, but a breakdown in the family
structure that has occurred over period of years. To fault the schools and our educators is a
cop out.

In August of 1999 I began what I still look at as being the best 7 years of my career in law
enforcement. I was our department's first school liaison officer. This, like today, came about
after the tragedy that occurred at Columbine High School in Colorado. Then, like now, there
was a renewed focus on having someone there to mentor and protect our most cherished
commodity, our children. It is not often in this profession that you leave work and feel you
made a positive impact in someone's life that you encountered. This position was different in
that aspect. Not only was it rewarding to be educating the young children of our area. But, in
doing so most every day, depending on what contact I had with the school age children, I left
work feeling at least one child went home happy for the time we spent together.

The families of the BRPS and Chippewa Hills School Districts are fortunate to have Deputy Jason
Losinski doing the same for their children that I did over 20 years ago. Jason is heavily involved,
not only taking complaints involving students in and outside of a school setting, but more
importantly developing lifelong relationships and bonds with the kids and faculty of the schools.
This does not only occur when he is on the clock, but because of who he is and how much he
cares, this happens with him coaching not only his children in youth sports, but coaching BRMS
boys’ and girls’ basketball too. These are moments where these kids will remember and feel

more comfortable coming forward with problems in their lives with him or another law
enforcement officer.

In a perfect world I would love to have an SRO for each of the school districts in our county,
including sharing that responsibility with the BRDPS and BRPS’s, knowing the positive influence
that would come from it. I would include any of our parochial or private schools in the service
we provided too. The problem lies with where law enforcement, specifically our office is now
with staffing. Partially due to the societal climate against the law enforcement profession
throughout the country, police morale has plunged, with retirements, resignations and a lack of
candidates, specifically quality applicants taking a toll on this once proud profession. Due to
this, we are having difficulty filling the road positions we have available, with deputies on
occasion being forced to work overtime to help cover shifts. This leads us to not have the
ability presently to have multiple SROs for our school districts.

This takes me back to the article where people are advocating against SROs being in our school
systems. The cost and positivity our communities get from having these men and women in
our school systems far outweighs any negatives anyone can come up with. My experience, past
and present, can attest to this.