Push for SRO at Saxe Gains Momentum among New Canaan Parents, Educators

 

New Canaan residents and educators advocating for a police officer at Saxe Middle School say the move would enhance not just student safety but also education and personal growth. School resource officers or “SROs” have been found at the middle school level to anchor and guide students at a time when they’re “forming their identities,” Saxe Principal Greg Macedo said Wednesday. “That is when they rely on their parents, teachers, coaches,” Macedo said during a Town Council meeting, held at the New Canaan Nature Center. Prompted by Town Council member Steve Karl, Macedo’s comments come as the Board of Education—and every other New Canaan taxpayer-supported department and agency—approaches the final stages of the municipal budget process. The police department requested about $100,000 for next fiscal year for a pair of positions that it says would improve service and reduce overtime—one of them would be the Saxe SRO (see page 53 in this PDF).