News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
Livingston Police Department is on the hunt for a new School Resource Officer (SRO).
Police Chief Greg Etheredge said the job will entail both roles in schools and in patrols. He said they are looking for a youth-friendly, people person, dedicated to the community.
“It is not just ‘I’m standing there in the buildings walking the halls,'” Etheredge said. “You’re a counselor, you’re a friend, you’re a role model. And it’s just a very, very important position.”
Etheredge said they are currently accepting both certified police and uncertified applicants. If an applicant is uncertified but deemed the right person for the job, Etheredge said the department will send them through police academy training.
Etheredge himself was an SRO for a number of years, and said it was one of his favorite roles he’d served in law enforcement. He said that it’s more important that the person want serve the community and make a difference.
“When I was growing up in Livingston I knew all of the police officers,” Etheredge said. “I knew them by name, if I saw them I waved to them and they stopped to talk to me. And they were role models to me.”
Etheredge said that the SRO program has grown over the past few years, and that currently each school has its own primary officer. He said while some instances may require more than officer present, such as a community event or sporting event, each officer will most likely be assigned their own school. Etheredge said minimum police officer salary sits at $15.50 an hour.
Applicants can apply at the Livingston Police Department located at 900 N. Church Street.
