Armed school resource officers approved for Riverhead district

Effective for the 2024-25 and 2025-26 school years, two armed school resource officers — also known as SROs — provided by the Riverhead Police Department will be stationed at the Riverhead Central School District, according to an agreement between district and Riverhead Town.

Beginning July 1 through June 30, 2025, the Riverhead Board of Education will pay 50% of the cost to employ one of the two SROs. For the 2025-2026 academic year and beyond, the school board agreed to pay 50% of the cost for both SROs, the agreement stated.

Officer Eric Cohen will be assigned to Riverhead High School and Officer Kaley Castantine will be monitoring Riverhead Middle School. Although these are their primary assignments, both officers may be required to visit other schools in the district, the contract stated.

“We are excited about the opportunities the SROs present for our students,” interim superintendent Cheryl Pedisich said in a letter to the school community. “The SROs will enhance the safety and security at these two buildings, while also serving as helpful resources for our students and their families, providing educational opportunities, and enhancing the relationships and the community with law enforcement.” 

Both SROs will remain employees of the Riverhead Police Department and will be posted at their respective school locations five days a week, according to the contract. The main duties of the school resource officers are to provide security and surveillance in their assigned areas, as well as take note and report any “irregularities, dangerous practices and conditions, accidents, fires and other acts or circumstances, requiring police or other action, which affect the health and welfare of students and school personnel.” 

The officers may carry weapons either openly or concealed when authorized by the police chief. An open carry may be required in situations where an “armed presence” could provide a “useful deterrent,” while concealed is defined in the contract as “only while in plain clothes and in circumstances where the officer may wish to act informally with students, parents or faculty.” 

The SROs will not have access to student lockers or personal belongings and their responsibilities exclude lunchroom, hall and other monitoring duties. In her letter, Ms. Pedisich said the officers are not “school disciplinarians,” as that is the school’s responsibility. 

However, if an incident is believed to be in violation of the law, the SRO will be contacted to determine if law enforcement is needed. All actions taken by these officers will be coordinated with their building principal, director of safety and security, district administration and staff members. 

In terms of the community-based aspect of the program, the SROs are to serve as “role models” for the students to look up to and turn to for any assistance. They will be an educational resource as well for students and their families through presentations on specific topics, such as security, crime prevention, drug and alcohol prevention and other related issues.

Before schools start up again in September, the officers will undergo a one-day orientation, Ms. Pedisich confirmed. Both Mr. Cohen and Ms. Castantine are familiar with the layouts of the high school and middle school, the superintendent said. They are also familiar faces to the students, as they are already involved in the school’s “Council for Unity” class. 

This orientation will focus on scheduling, reporting, information sharing, strategies and review of district emergency plans, Ms. Pedisich said. 

SROs have been around in schools for decades, but gained traction in the 1990s due to increased federal funding, spike in school shootings, like at Columbine High School in Colorado, and growing concerns of student safety. 

Calls for more SRO programs in schools spiked nationwide following the 2012 Sandy Hook elementary school shooting, which claimed the lives of 20 children and six educators. 

This is not the first time the RCSD has considered implementing school resource officers on campus. The district allocated funds in the 2018-19 budget to hire a school resource officer from the Riverhead Police Department, officer Byron Perez. 

The Board of Education started having serious conversations about the logistics of bringing SROs back to the district over a year ago, Ms. Pedisich said in her statement. The decision comes after a series of incidents occurred during the 2023-24 school year, during which parents and students requested “heightened security,” according to previous reporting. 

“We know that school districts all across the country are constantly reviewing and enhancing their security measures, and the Riverhead school district is no different,” said school board president James Scudder. “We will continue to be proactive and we want the community to know that we take the safety of all our students and staff to be paramount.” 

At the July 16 Town Board meeting, Supervisor Tim Hubbard said even though the bulk of the funding is coming from the town — and essentially the taxpayers — he believed it was important to bring the SRO program back to the school district. 

“The funding is coming from the same people, which is the taxpayers, so whether the town pays for it or the school pays for it, we’re hitting in the same pocket,” Mr. Hubbard said. “Schools do much better with SRO officers in them than if they don’t, and in today’s day and age, we can’t be safe enough.” 

Councilman Ken Rothwell voted in favor of the program, but said he thinks the school should have covered the cost of the officers in its entirety. 

“I do want the resources in there, I think they are instrumental in guiding our youth, so I support this — but it is us that’s funding the majority of the money,” Mr. Rothwell said. 

Marianne Cartisano, interim assistant superintendent for business, said the cost of the assigned SRO the district needs to pay is determined by the town’s finance administrator. She said in an email that she expects this number to be included in the town’s reimbursement billing after the school year begins in September.