Burlington SRO Program2020 Overview

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SRO Arrest Guidelines“Arrest” in the context of this presentation means any action taken from a custodial arrest to the issuance of a citation to appear in court to a referral to any restorative justice program

This includes referral to the Community Justice Center, which by policy is the preferred and by far the most frequent form of “arrest” that is made

Custodial arrests are exceedingly rare as it relates to student-based conduct, and as a result of policy developed by the District and the Department are essentially to be avoided if at all possible

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SRO Arrest Guidelines

Source: BSD/BPD MOU 20153

SRO Arrest Frequency

The Burlington SROs have responded to incidents or calls for services that resulted in an arrest in just over 1-2% of the approximately 1,400 - 1,600 incidents they were called to in each of the last two years, continuing a generally downward trend in that regard over the last several years.

Note: All Data Is Preliminary and Subject To Change

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Student-Specific Demographics

As we evaluate data moving forward, please note that the BPD Data Reports do not track diversity with the same metrics that the Burlington School District does.

Source: BSD D&E Report5

Agencywide Juvenile Arrest Totals (SY)

Agencywide data for both “School Year” and “Calendar Year” reporting show a general decrease in juvenile arrests across the Burlington Police Department, with some change depending on SY v CY as it relates to data sampling dates.

Note: All Data Is Preliminary and Subject To Change

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Agencywide Arrest Totals (CY)

Agencywide data for both “School Year” and “Calendar Year” reporting show a general decrease in juvenile arrests across the Burlington Police Department, with some change depending on SY v CY as it relates to data sampling dates.

Note: All Data Is Preliminary and Subject To Change

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Agencywide Arrestee Data

Despite the notable decrease in juvenile arrests, disparity in arrestee rates is present as it relates to distribution by race.

Specific to this chart, data shows Black arrests at a disproportionate rate to population data, whether District or Census.

*Y Axis is arrestee count, not percent of total

Note: All Data Is Preliminary and Subject To Change

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Juvenile Arrests - SRO vs Other OfficersAnalysis of SRO/NonSRO data shows that SROs arrest fewer juveniles than other Officers.

SRO arrest rates have also fallen overall by nearly two-thirds in the last two academic years.

Note: All Data Is Preliminary and Subject To Change

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SRO Arrestee Data

Similar analysis of arrestee data in SRO Arrests does show disparity. It is notable that compared to Agencywide data (Slide 8) initial analysis shows this to be less pronounced.

It is also notable that the lower total arrest lends any variation to be significantly magnified in data analysis.

Note: All Data Is Preliminary and Subject To Change

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BSD Oversight and GovernanceOversight and Understanding: As we decrease overall enforcement, the smaller numbers can mean much larger percentage swings. For example, with 11 arrests in 2020, racial disparity increased even as the real number of arrests fell. As a District, it is critical to know who is being arrested, in what form, and for what reasons. The MOU currently is quite clear about what the expectations, and more importantly the limits, are for the District, the Department, and for the SROs involved. Adherence to this and communication among staff, faculty, and the community is key.

Constant Evaluation and Development: The MOU was written and signed in 2015, which is quite recent considering there are active criminal statutes that have not been reviewed in decades. That said, an annual review of the document to refine, redevelop or reissue it may be beneficial to all parties. It is clear to everyone that change occurs and will continue to occur, the relationship should be kept up to date with those changes.

Good Governance: The SRO Program exists as a partnership between the District and the Department, meaning that without both parties engaged, there is no partnership. More specifically, the SROs provide resources, in name and by function, to the District, their client, which the District controls. 11

SRO SelectionIt is critical that, should the District remain engaged with the BPD SRO Program, that the District retain a strong presence in the process of selecting SROs. Lacking an SRO Program, when District employees call for police services, an available Officer will respond.

Engagement with the SRO Selection Process ensures that the District maintains governance over the qualifications, experience, education, approach and other elements that the primary individual the Department assigns to the District.

It is important that the District be aware that an anticipated retirement within the next 12 months will result in a personnel change within the SRO Program. With this in mind, engagement with the SRO Selection Process may be a more timely topic than ever. 12

Constant Evaluation and ChangeAs with any program, the BSD/BPD/SRO Program is subject to constant evaluation and change based on the community and District’s requirements.

There are currently significant calls for the removal of SROs from schools, with some citation of criminalization of minor disturbances, police involvement of truancy and related concerns. In the larger view, there are police agencies nationally and locally that are involved in truancy and lack the local controls present in the Burlington School District that prohibit the criminalization of minor issues. Each community is different, as are the way those concerns are addressed. The SRO Program in Burlington does not address truancy and is structured to specifically not criminalize minor behavioral concerns, but instead directing them to the school administration whenever possible.

While no program is ever without flaws and every partnership has room for growth, we feel that our presence working in tandem with teachers, counselors, staff and students has been beneficial. There is always space for change and redefinition of roles and in the event the District determines the time for the partnership to be completely restructured or to end completely has arrived, we leave that decision in their capable hands as professional educators. 13