Massachusetts' new anti-bullying law presents "a tremendous need" for the position, School Superitendent Theresa Kane said.
LUDLOW - A 5-0 vote by the School Committee to provide $20,000, about half the funds needed for a school resource officer position, appears to have cleared the way to restore the position this fall.
Police Chief James J. McGowan has also told town administrator Ellie Villano that his department will pay half the salary plus benefits for the position.
The School Committee can fund $20,000 from one-time federal stimulus funds, School Committee chairman James P. Harrington said. “We felt it was too important not to fund half the position,” Harrington said last week, noting that it’s rare for his committee to take a unanimous vote.
The Police Department, meanwhile, has applied for a three-year federal grant to hire an additional police officer and should learn if it receives the funds by Sept. 1.
If the federal grant is approved, the position will not have to be funded with both the School Department and Police Department funds, Harrington said.
School Superintendent Theresa M. Kane told the selectmen a week ago that the state’s new anti-bullying legislation presents “a tremendous need” for a school resource officer. The legislation requires investigations and follow-up of all bullying complaints.
“We’re not staffed for this,” Kane said.