By MATT LINDSEY

POTSDAM – Although Potsdam Central School did not include a paying for a police officer in school in its 2018-19 budget, the school will host a community forum to continue discussions of possibly hiring one.

The Potsdam Central School Board of Education has been exploring the idea of adding a what they call a "school resource officer" for several months. “We did a preliminary poll in January and found that our community had mixed feelings about adding an SRO, and there were also many questions,” Potsdam Central Superintendent Joann Chambers said.

On Feb. 5, PCS held a community forum on school safety.

“At that meeting, we shared information about the steps we are already taking to keep students and staff safe at school, including details about our District Safety Committee, District Safety Plan, security features, drills, and efforts to identify and respond to our students' social and emotional needs,” Chambers said.

School officials shared information about the possibility of adding an armed officer and provided an opportunity for participants to ask questions.

PCS will hold a second Community Forum on Tuesday, April 3, at 5 p.m. in the A.A. Kingston Middle School L.G.I.R. The forum is sponsored by two parent groups: PCS Cares, and the Potsdam Parent Teacher Student Association.

“We will share some of the same information,” Chambers said. “Then, Sergeant Mike Ames from the Potsdam Village Police Department will do a presentation entitled: Active Shooter Awareness and Response.”

Finally, there will be an opportunity for participants to ask questions and offer suggestions for improving school safety.

Chambers said the plan is to have an individual there who has worked as an officer in a school to answer questions about the position.

“I will be polling parents after the forum to get a sense for how the community feels about adding an SRO position,” Chambers said.

At this point, PCS has not included an SRO position in their preliminary budget. Based on the governor's proposal, PCS is facing $600,000 gap.

“The gap exists because our contractual obligations, including salaries, health insurance, and retirement contributions, are increasing by more than the increase in aid we are projected to receive,” she said.

To close the gap, school officials have identified about $450,000 in potential staff and program cuts. The remainder of the gap would be closed by using some of our reserves.

“If we receive more aid than what was proposed in the governor's budget, the Board will decide what positions and programs to restore as well as whether or not to add the SRO,” Chambers said. “There may also be some specific funding in the state budget for safety and security items.”