Kent schools see new approach to campus security

Changes in the way security is being handled are under way at the Kent School District as the district is shifting away from a “security model” and toward a “safety model” that includes a more proactive approach based on developing relationships with students.

Even the name has been changed to reflect the new philosophy being instituted in the schools. What was once security is now School Safety Services.

Leading the way is new Superintendent Edward Lee Vargas, who said it was important to move away from a strict enforcement model of school security and instead focus on creating a safe, nurturing environment.

“If the kids don’t feel safe, they’re not going to learn,” he said, adding that prior districts in which he worked also made the switch. “I’ve seen the difference it could have.”

But more than a name change, the new safety model is a different approach on school security. Instead of simply being there to enforce the rules when something goes awry, Vargas said safety officers would take a more “personal and preventative approach” in an attempt to build relationships and stop problems before they occur.

“It’s a change of philosophy or direction,” said Lt. Ken Thomas of the Kent Police Department, who is also working as the interim director of School Safety Services for the district. “It’s how the officers in the schools approach their jobs.”

According to Thomas, one of the most visible differences in the two models will be when an officer goes “hands-on” to physically restrain a student. Under a safety model, the officers will give students more chances to do the right thing before physically moving a student.

“In the past, a security officer may have been authorized to use force, but it may not have been the right thing to do,” he said. “Just because you can use force, doesn’t mean you should use force.”

“You can get a kid to move without putting your hands on him,” Vargas said. “how you treat and talk to them can make a huge difference in how they respond.”

Safety officers will also be encouraged to spend more time talking to students and building relationships.

“They know things we don’t,” Vargas said, adding that students often know when and where fights will take place or if someone has a weapon.

“Our officers are learning what’s going to happen before it happens,” Thomas said, adding that the new system should also get students more involved and active and there taking more ownership and responsibility in overall school safety.

Vargas said the No. 1 reason kids drop out is because they think no one cares, so one of the goals is a message to students is that they are respected.

“Hopefully more kids will know we’re not there to bust them , so to speak, but that we care about them,” he said.

Thomas, who is part of the city’s gang unit, narcotic unit and major crimes unit, also said that the police department partnership with the district allows the two to work together because students who are in school are not out on the streets.

“We see we can’t arrest our way out of the gang problem,” he said. “We need to work with the schools … to try and help that.

“It’s more than a school district problem; it’s an entire community issue,” he said.

The partnership will also allow both groups, the district and the police, to gain access to more grants, prompting Vargas to call it a “win-win.”

Thomas, who is filling the director role for up to six months, also is conducting a review of the district’s new Safety Services Department and working with officers to train them in the new methods.

At the end of the review, a new mission, vision and values document will be created. Thomas said the review is “not a complete overhaul” and that most safety officers were already practicing a similar concept, but now it would simply be codified.

Kent-Meridian High School Principal Wade Barringer said he was encouraged by the new model, which is something he has encouraged his school safety officers to practice for a few years already. At K-M, he said, the students feel more comfortable around the officers because of the relationships they have built.

“They feel safe around them and can come to them with questions and concerns,” Barringer said. “Be open with them and they will be open with you.”

Barringer said the students seem to respond very well to additional chances to change before the officers have to get physical in any way.

“They appreciate the opportunity to correct their behavior before they are assumed to be doing something wrong,” he said. “Sometimes they just need that second chance or people to listen to them.”

Vargas and Thomas both said that in incidents that require an immediate response or when safety is an issue, the officers will still move quickly to protect students and staff because the most important thing was making sure that everyone in the school remains safe.

“If the kids aren’t feeling safe, they’re not going to be ready to learn,” he said.