How school resource officers in IPSD 204 build safety through relationships

There’s often a perception that the only thing school resource officers do is dole out punishments and enforce the law.

But nothing could be further from the truth, says Ron Wilke, Indian Prairie School District 204’s coordinator of safety, security and emergency preparedness.

In fact, school resource officers — known as SROs — are primarily relationship-builders who work to prevent violence, resolve conflicts, and create safe conditions within the schools they serve, Wilke said.

SROs handle ‘a little of everything’

Nine SROs fill these roles at the district’s 34 schools, and they joined Wilke on Monday to address the school board about the breadth of their work. Officer Ray Morris of the Aurora Police Department, the SRO at Waubonsie Valley High School, put it succinctly:

“Safety a