Earle schools want partnership with city

Earle schools want partnership with city

District officials hope to gain community center access, resource officer

news@theeveningtimes.com

Earle school district is looking to partner with the city on using the community center and getting a school resource officer.

State appointed superintendent Dr. Richard Wilde told the city council that the school would like to be able to use the community center for school related functions.

“For next year we would like for you to consider the idea of the community center with us providing staffing and some technology,” Wilde said. “What we would get in exchange is the use of the facility. So we would be doing double purpose. We would be helping with staffing.

The community center is located on Hwy. 64 in a former car dealership. The building has been undergoing maintenance and renovations over the past few years to make it available for use for public functions, and the once run down building is now seeing steady use.

Wilde also asked the city to consider partnering with them for a school resource officer.

A school resource officer, or SRO, is a uniformed police officer paid for by the school district who oversees security in the schools and acts as a liaison with students to better improve relations with the police department.

Wilde said he would like the city to enter into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the

school district to allow them to make use of an officer from the Earle police

department.

The goal is to have a full time SRO in the school paid for by the district but under the supervision of Earle PD by next year.

“The MOU would be where the police chief and the police department would supervise our security officer,” Wilde said.

“By doing so, we would be willing to pay for the supervision and sharing in some of the cost of the training as we move forward.”

Mayor Sherman Smith thanked Wilde for keeping the city council informed about what is going on in the school district since the state assumed control, and said the city appreciates his collaborative approach.

Last month, Wilde approached the city about partnering with the school district and a local youth group to keep the pool open.

“Thank you, Dr. Wilde for your interest in Earle, and not just the school,” Smith said. “You bring forth some good collaborative efforts. I just want to say that we are here to help.”

By Mark Randall