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The days of a school resource officer being there for truants and smokers are long gone. When assigned to a school, officers need to be trained in juvenile law, psychology, suicide prevention, cyberbullying, specialized use of force, and sadly — armed response to active shooters. No more rookies, cast-offs and “ROAD” program officers.

Sheriff Wheeler and Chief Coon are probably on top of this issue, but the recent tragedy in Florida brings it to the fore. I am somewhat familiar with the issues but I am not going to tell the sheriff and the school board what is best or what must be done. However, something should be done and soon.

I would like to see a special public hearing by the school board, attended by the chief of police and sheriff, that addresses some of these issues. President Trump is correct, our children and grandchildren are certainly more valuable than our banks and jewelry stores. This is not a partisan issue, it is an issue best addressed by those professionals in charge before it becomes a tragic statistic.

We can and should “harden the target,” we should have good plans in place and the absolute best training available for our first responders. We can hold our collective breath and pray such horrible things won’t happen here or we can be reasonable and as best prepared as possible. We must be proactive and our elected leaders should be ready to address our concerns.

STEVEN MORGAN

Sandpoint