Coalition pushing legislators to pay for more police, counselors in Michigan schools

HOLT - More law enforcement and mental health personnel in schools as well as shoring up building security were among the proposals offered by a coalition aiming to prevent violence in Michigan schools. 

Representatives from the Michigan Sheriffs Association, the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan and half a dozen school groups unveiled their Michigan School Safety Plan at Holt High School's North campus Thursday morning. The plan calls for a combined $120 million in grant programs from the state to support its proposed reforms.

Among the coalition's recommendations:

• Adding more armed police officers, often called school resource officers, from sheriff and police departments to schools
• Bringing in more school mental health professions to help identify potential problems before they become threats of violence
• Supporting grants to make school buildings more secure
• Instituting mandatory reporting of threats and graduated penalties to curb potential violence

The coalition is currently seeking legislators to support their proposals.

Ingham County Sheriff Scott Wriggelsworth said trained law enforcement personnel inside schools can form relationships with students and get them resources before situations escalate. His department partners with Delhi Township and Holt Public Schools to allow one deputy to function as a school resource officer within Holt's high school. The cost of doing so is paid for by the township, Wriggelsworth said.

Wriggelsworth announced plans earlier this month to have two deputies assigned to each of the 19 out-county schools. Those deputies will visit schools in Holt, Mason, Webberville, Dansville and Leslie as part of their normal duties.

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Lansing School District Superintendent Yvonne Caamal Canul said she'd appreciate adding more school resource officers. The district currently has three that are funded by the city of Lansing. That's on top of 27 public safety officers the district employs. 

Caamal Canul said there also needs to be a focus on helping troubled students before it escalates to a law enforcement situation. 

"We've had plenty of experience now nationally in understanding that there are some indicators that students are troubled and that could lead to a tragedy," Caamal Canul said. "So how do we catch those indicators ahead of time? How do we work with those kids and in what way?"  

Caamal Canul said the district's student to counselor ratio is about 450 to 1, though a national counseling association recommends it be closer to 250 to 1. 

Wriggelsworth said he hopes to strengthen partnerships with area districts in the near future, producing a unified plan and training video, "so the districts know what to expect when we come here and we can give some helpful hints to students and staff of what they should do, god forbid, something happens."

Mark Reene, the immediate past president of the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan, said the proposed plan will help prevent students who are struggling from falling through the cracks by mandating reporting of threats to law enforcement. 

"There's been enough talk," Reene said. Our kid's lives are on the line. It's time for a change."

The coalition did not make recommendations for arming teachers and other school staff, a plan which has been discussed at the federal level by President Donald Trump.

Wriggelsworth said law enforcement officials would be challenged to identify a shooter if multiple civilians were on site and armed in an active shooter scenario.  

"If we had multiple people, multiple civilians with guns and we didn't have a good description of who the shooter was, just imagine the tragic outcomes that could come from that."

Contact RJ Wolcott at (517) 377-1026 or rwolcott@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @wolcottr.