New York District Adds Armed Guards on Patrol
In addition to patrolling the halls, guards will cover crowded school areas like the cafeteria during meal times.
- By Jessica Davis
- January 23, 2019
Armed guards are now patrolling the halls of campuses in the Liverpool Central School District.
LCSD Director Michael McCarthy told Rochester First the program is cost-effective as well as helpful in keeping kids safe.
"It was great for the district because they were getting officers with 20 years of law enforcement experience," McCarthy said. "They've virtually seen just about everything there is to see, good and bad in our communities. Many of them are local residents. Many of them have students in our district, so they have a vested interest in keeping everyone safe.”
The armed guards are different than school resource officers. Instead, they are retired police officers who have their own health benefits. The district can hire three to four guards for the cost of hiring and training one school resource officer.
"When budget times get bad, we can keep our security levels at sufficient staffing without having to sacrifice the extra cost of incurring benefits for these guys," McCarthy added.
Because the guards are armed, they will maintain the same certification required of them when they were active police officers.
"They're carrying, and carrying concealed, so it's not going to be overly traumatic to children," McCarthy said. "They're going to appear to be our normal security people. We want them to be a part of this school community."
The team of security staff and armed guards will rotate between all 14 school buildings. In addition to patrolling the halls, guards will cover crowded school areas like the cafeteria during meal times.
About the Author
Jessica Davis is the Associate Content Editor for 1105 Media.