Understanding the systemic shift and impact of school resource officers on school climate

Schools are a prominent aspect of our society and are now responsible for far more than just educating the youth of America. With the rise in fear of mass school shootings came the responsibility of schools to maintain the safety of students and teachers. At the heart of this push to ensure safety within schools are School Resource Officers (SROs). In order to conduct learning, schools have resorted to the use of zero tolerance policies to manage students’ behavior. These methods for student learning have had numerous negative effects, ultimately leading to the school-to-prison pipeline. While these policies were in place before SROs were placed in schools for safety, the roles of SROs have shifted drastically towards management and discipline roles, contributing to the perpetuation of zero tolerance policies and the school-toprison pipeline. This paper discusses the implications of SROs in our schools and the school-toprison pipeline and offers suggested policy recommendations to restore schools with an increased climate for learning.