LOUDOUN COUNTY, Va. - A meeting is being held in Loudoun County Thursday evening to discuss putting student resource officer's into elementary schools.
It's been a contentious issue, with supporters saying it will increase safety while others have expressed concerns about potential discipline disparities and the "school-to-prison pipeline," specifically among the minority student population.
Some are also worried about the Sheriff's Office's relationship with ICE.
READ MORE: Loudoun County considers putting student resource officers in elementary schools
What we know:
The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office says the county School Board is set to address elementary school safety today at 5:15 p.m.
The meeting will be held at the LCPS Administration Building at 21000 Education Court in Ashburn. Community members who wish to speak can sign up here.
Loudoun County sheriff file photo (Getty Images)
"Loudoun’s elementary schools already have frequent interactions with law enforcement, but no SROs on site. Over the past three years, SROs have been redirected from middle schools more than 5,000 times to handle incidents at elementary schools. When those calls occur, SROs assigned to middle and high schools are redirected, taking them away from the schools they are assigned to protect," the Sheriff's Office said in a post on X.
Currently, school resource officers are assigned to middle and high schools in Loudoun County.
The plan for elementary schools is a phased, four-year rollout, adding roughly 15 SROs each year. The funding would be included in the next fiscal year's budget.
What's next:
The final decision will be made by the Board of Supervisors on Monday when it considers funding for the SRO program.
A final vote on the district's budget is expected in April.