‘UnPHILtered’: School safety top of mind as students return to class

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — As Hoosier children head back to the classroom for a new school year, so are many school resource officers across the state including at Noblesville Schools.

Thanks to a 2018 referendum vote, the district now has a school resource officer (SRO) in every one of its buildings. It’s one of only a handful of schools in the state to have an SRO in every building.

Noblesville Superintendent of Human Resources and Safety, Heather Hendrich joined News 8’s Phil Sanchez on “UnPHILtered” to explain how the expansion of the program has been a game changer for the district.

“It just brings a lot of comfort to our community, our students, and our parents,” Hendrich said. “That safety piece and just the integral part that they’ve become in all of our buildings.”

Sergeant Andrew Reiss of the Noblesville Police Department said his officers do more than just typical policing.

“The officers in my buildings have a great educational piece that we teach at the elementary level,” he said. “We engage with our kids and we do everything we can to help them survive high school and life so they can move on to college or somewhere else and do so successfully. We’re here in case something bad happens but we do so much more than that.”

In addition to having an officer in every building, Noblesville Schools has made over 50 safety enhancements since a shooting on May 25, 2018. The district states its SROs are active with the National Association of School Resource Officers for ongoing development, and earn special certification and participate in training beyond regular policing.

To watch the full interview, click on the video above.