Arizona Schools Start Intensive School Resource Officer Training

PHOENIX, AZ — Governor Doug Ducey’s office Thursday announced that intensive additional training for school resource officers at Arizona schools begins next week in Maricopa County. The additional training is covered by state funding, and motivated by the negative experience Representative Alma Hernandez had with a school resource officer during her high school years.

In January, Hernandez Tweeted that Ducey’s plan to make schools safer by increasing the number of school resource officers wouldn’t work. Her Tweet also referenced spinal injuries inflicted on her by a school resource officer when she was in high school.

Describing the incident, Hernandez said that during her freshman year, two seniors picked a fight with her. The school resource officer responded but was the opposite of helpful, she said. “Instead of breaking up the fight and helping, especially me since I’m the one who was attacked, he actually did quite the opposite and ended up brutally attacking me outside of the high school,” Hernandez recalled in an interview with KTAR. The SRO slammed her down on the ground and dragged her, causing serious nerve and spinal damage that remains with her even now.

That’s why she’s big on training SROs better. “No student should ever have to experience what I experienced at school — and with this training, we can help ensure no student does,” Hernandez said in a statement.

The focused training will be presented and was created by the National Association of School Resource Officers and focuses on adolescent mental health treatments and disorders, understanding adolescent development, crisis de-escalation and intervention, school resource officer responsibilities and roles, connections to resources and family experiences.

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office Training Academy hosts the 12-hour training course next Monday and Tuesday, and the Mesa Police Department Training Academy will follow suit next Wednesday and Thursday. The classes are filled to capacity.

But school administrators in other parts of Arizona such as Tucson and surrounding areas need not fear: The training will also be offered to schools in southern and northern Arizona early next year, administered by the Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board (AZPOST).

Ducey said in a release that he is thankful Hernandez spoke up about her experience and inspired the advanced training. “These courses will make a big difference to improve safety in our schools — and Representative Alma Hernandez deserves a lot of credit. Ensuring school resource officers have the training they need will help keep Arizona’s students safe and on the track to success."