TINTON FALLS – The Tinton Falls Borough Council and the Monmouth Regional High School Board of Education have entered into an agreement through which the borough will provide a school resource officer (SRO) at the high school from July 1, 2020, through June 30, 2024.
The school board will pay the borough $48,000 per year for the services of an SRO, according to information provided by the municipality. The SRO will be on duty during regular school hours.
Monmouth Regional High School is in Tinton Falls and educates students in grades 9-12 from Tinton Falls, Eatontown and Shrewsbury Township.
According to a resolution council members passed on June 16, the municipality and the school board sought to enter into a shared services agreement for the provision of an SRO at Monmouth Regional High School to ensure the continued safety and welfare of students and staff members.
According to the New Jersey School Boards Association, “an SRO is a specially trained sworn police officer who is assigned full-time to protect the children, staff and property in New Jersey’s public schools.
“The mandatory training they receive ensures they are adequately prepared to face challenges that are unique to the school climate, and handle them appropriately.
“The NJSBA School Security Task Force, a group convened in March 2013 as a part of the NJSBA’s Safe and Secure Schools Project, in response to the deadly December 2012 shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut, studied all aspects of school security.
“In its 2014 final report, the task force stated that an SRO can provide a critical safety factor and valuable counseling and support services for students. Therefore, the employment of SROs is the ‘preferred’ model for a law enforcement presence in a school building,” according to the NJSBA.
In other business during the June 16 meeting, the Borough Council authorized a shared services agreement with Eatontown for the repair and reconstruction of Hope Road.
According to a resolution, Tinton Falls is proceeding with the repair and reconstruction of Hope Road in Tinton Falls, and Eatontown officals “desire to have the improvement of Hope Road on the northbound side of Tinton Avenue, in Eatontown, included in the improvement project.”
Officials in both towns said they believed it would be beneficial and cost effective to both communities to enter into a shared services agreement so the Hope Road project can proceed in both municipalities.
Tinton Falls will be the lead agency for the project and will pay the initial costs associated with the design and oversight of the project, according to the resolution. Eatontown officials will reimburse Tinton Falls for any work completed in that borough.