Whitley County Schools planning to add another SRO to its roster

The Whitley County School District will soon be adding an additional school resource officer (SRO) for the upcoming academic school year. There is also an update on construction projects occurring within the district.

The Whitley County Board of Education recently met for their monthly meeting, where board members considered an additional SRO for the upcoming academic 2023-2024 school year, emphasizing the district’s commitment to prioritizing safety and security within the school community.

There would be a total of five full-time SROs once the position was hired in.

Sheriff Bill Elliot attended the meeting and emphasized overall safety for students and staff.

“School safety is really important to me. I make a pledge to all the schools to make schools safer and hire the best people for this,” Sheriff Bill Elliot said.

Superintendent John Siler questioned the process for further information.

“If you okay it, we’ll have to start the hiring process. Once the position is filled, the individual that is willing to take on the role will do so… we will hire the best people we can hire. We have a lot of people in this community that are willing to work,” Sheriff Bill Elliot added.

John Siler added, “working with these kids and building those relationships with the students… with those kind of connections, the kids can come to you… Then you know you are doing your job well.”

The board voted to approve the additional SRO position.

Prior to the meeting, the board had been budgeting for four SROs for several years; however, they were only provided three due to staffing shortage at the sheriff’s department.

The five SROs will rotate school positions.

The meeting also provided an opportunity for an update on ongoing construction projects within the district. Suzanne Irwin, a project architect with RossTarrant, presented a comprehensive construction update via PowerPoint, offering insights into the progress and development of various projects.

“There are lots of things to celebrate. There is the Whitley-North Project, which is 100 percent complete. The trainings were complete. With the Oak Grove Elementary School, we are really close to that being done. The contractor is finishing up some of the final items. The biggest news that everyone is excited about; there is a switchgear. They are working on installing that and the contractor is working on a schedule to get the final result, which should be quick. The Whitley County High School P.E. addition has received a certificate of occupancy. The facility has equipment in it and the final punch items are being completed and worked on. The Whitley County Middle School track updates will be completed July 24 and will be improved. For the Athletic Improvement Project, the turf field work is underway. The proposal request is out to the contractors to address the requests of changes to visitor side of the track and the field, which changes the sidewalk and the fencing area of that side. The process of field drainage will be in completion on July 10”, RossTarrant Architect representative said.

The board was excited about this update and approved the motion of a track replacement order for an amount of $184,758.65.

Prior to the meeting, the board of education had discussed the bids for the track’s renovations. The project was originally tabled due to the lack of bids.

In other board of education business:

-The No Kid Hungry Program Grant was approved to help with the summer feeding program, for a total of $11,800.

-The board discussed and improved the Kentucky Educational Development Corporation (KEDC) Membership for the year 2023-2024 in the amount of $5,320.

-Additionally, they approved of the Green River Regional Education Cooperative (GRREC) Membership Intent Letter for the 2023-2024 school year. This would enhance instruction.

-The board reviewed and approved Worker’s Compensation Insurance, Fleet, Property and Liability Insurance in the amount of $789,509 for the 2023-2024 school year, guaranteeing the necessary coverage for the district’s assets and trainings.