New SRO for Marcellus Community Schools
Deputy Jason Higley
Marcellus Community Schools is pleased to be able to bring on Jason Higley as the School Resource Officer (SRO) for this school year. Jason is no stranger to Marcellus. He was the assigned patrolman from the Cass County Sheriff’s Department.
The SRO position has been years in the making. Former Superintendent Nanette Pauley and County Sheriff Rick Behnke were working hard to make this happen. Supt Pauley had secured grant funding for this position, but Sheriff Behnke did not have enough deputies at the time. Behnke was able to hire Jason Higley as a deputy as part of his recruitment efforts.
Due to recruiting efforts of the past couple of years, Sheriff Clint Roach has been able to identify and train up local recruits to fully staff the department. All the while, Michigan renewed safety grants to school districts. It was just a matter of time for these two efforts to align. Roach had two deputies who applied to the School Resource Officer at Marcellus Schools.
Undersheriff Tim Schurr led the hiring process for the position. Although the SRO is a Cass Co Sheriff Dept employee, Schurr understood the importance of bringing together a committee to make this important decision. The hiring committee consisted of Undersheriff Schurr, Superintendent Dr. Dunn, and Niles Community Schools Resource Office.
Of the two candidates, Jason Higley stood out. His knowledge of Marcellus and work within the community were an added value. Jason’s experience and background made him a natural fit to this position.
As to what will be Jason’s primary duties, he has many. The primary focus will be to:
- ensure the physical safety of school buildings
- respond to unauthorized people on school property
- be a welcoming presence in the schools
Jason will do a lot more than that. He will also be a help to the district in school truancy and welfare checks, presence at athletic events, and educating students on law enforcement topics.
Although this position is grant-funded, there is no guarantee that Marcellus Schools will have a School Resource Officer year after year. However, that did not deter Jason. When Jason accepted the position, he knew being the SRO could be a short-lived event.
Superintendent Dunn is hopeful that the Michigan legislature will continue to provide safety grant dollars to school districts. If legislators get stupid and decide to not help keep our schools safe, Marcellus will have to look to other means and partnerships to keep the SRO position.
To give credit where credit is due, Dr. Dunn is grateful to Rep. Steve Carra’s office who helped the district in expediting the licensing approval with LARA so that the district could get the Nightlock door security installed this summer in all the district’s classrooms.
