Berkeley County school resource officers train for active shooters and other scenarios
MONCKS CORNER, S.C. (WCBD) – It was an action-packed day inside Berkeley High School on Tuesday while school resource officers trained ahead of the upcoming school year.
“I love this week. This is our 11th year doing this training week with our school resource officers,” said Tim Knight, the Director of Security and Emergency Management for the Berkeley County School District.
The SROs will spend the week preparing for numerous scenarios. Tuesday’s focus was on active shooter training. With the help of instructors from the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office, the officers ran through drills and practiced response using a simulator.
“What we’re trying to do is give them the basics of how to come in here and identify a threat, to move through the building as fast and rapid as possible, find the threat, and stop and eliminate the threat,” explained Major Bobby Shuler with BCSO’s Special Operations and Criminal Investigations Division.
Knight said this year’s training featured new elements like preparing for incidents outside of the building and on school buses.
“What we’ve seen over the years is just an increased number of school bus related incidents. You know, whether it’s an assault, whether it’s a weapon on the bus, any kind of contraband that an SRO gets called to go to handle,” Knight added.
Berkeley County’s 54 SROs are contracted from five local agencies – BCSO, the Moncks Corner Police Department, the Hanahan Police Department, the Goose Creek Police Department, and the Charleston Police Department.
“We want our parents to know that when their children come to school this school year, that they will have a dedicated, very well-trained school resource officer in their schools,” Knight said.
According to Knight, the training also includes working with mental health professionals.
