Successful Practices & Strategies Vol. 5 | No. 2 

Conyers Police Department 

Conyers, Georgia 

www.conyerspolice.com 

Community policing element 

Problem solving 

Problem/issue 

School-based policing 

Problem description 

Increase of student body population and criminal activity at the schools became more than just one 

school resource officer (SRO) should have to handle. Additional staffing is needed to address crime 

trends and gang and drug activity and to build trust between the students and police officers. 

Community policing strategies implemented 

Increasing the staff by just one officer has allowed for the distribution of workload and given more time 

for the officers to get to know the students. Also, we chose to select one female and one male officer to 

have both genders represented at the schools. This has allowed for the students to be more comfortable 

with the officer of their choice when it comes to building a trusting relationship with the SRO. 

The new male SRO has been very active in sports programs at the high school and encourages physical 

fitness, team building, and other positive interactions rather than merely portraying a law enforcement 

officer in the school. It is almost as common to see him out of uniform as in his uniform interacting with 

the students therefore making him more approachable to some people. The female SRO has 

participated in the RARE Pearls mentoring program. RARE Pearls are high school girls who are at risk of 

not living up to their full potential because of various challenges. 

Change and/or impact as a result of these community policing efforts 

In preparing for the quarterly COPS Office conference call we ran crime statistics to compare the 2017 

crime rate at the high school to the 2016 rate. We learned that overall assaults are down 40% and thefts 

are down 70%. This may be attributed to the increase of officer presence at the schools, the relationship 

between the SROs and the Criminal Investigations Division in aiding in the solving of crime, the 

relationship between the SROs and the school administration, and most importantly the relationship 

bonds that have formed between SROs and the students. More often, students will approach the SROs 
 

 

 

 

 

with challenges and the officers can help guide them in making better decisions for themselves. This 

benefits the students and the staff and fosters a healthy and safe learning environment, which is the 

ultimate goal. 

Lessons learned through program implementation 

After years of operating with only one dedicated full-time SRO, the old adage that two are better than 

one rings true. An officer’s job within the confines of a public school goes beyond taking reports and 

responding to calls for service in today’s society. Having two SROs fully devoted to the schools—and 

furthermore having one male and one female—has greatly improved law enforcement relationships 

with students and faculty alike. Greater exposure combined with building trust has undoubtedly had an 

impact reducing crime in and around campuses. 

The opinions contained herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the 

U.S. Department of Justice. References to specific agencies, companies, products, or services should not be considered an 

endorsement by the author(s) or the U.S. Department of Justice. Rather, the references are illustrations to supplement 

discussion of the issues. 

The Internet references cited in this document were valid as of the date of publication. Given that URLs and websites are in 

constant flux, neither the author(s) nor the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services can vouch for their current validity. 

Published 2018