Police to add office at school

ROCKFORD - The Rockford Police Department will operate a satellite office in Parkway High School to boost security and student safety.

"I've been discussing this with (Rockford Police) Chief (Paul) May for the past three or four months, and I think it will be a valuable aspect of our school," superintendent Greg Puthoff said at Tuesday night's Parkway Local Schools Board of Education meeting.

May will use a vacant high school conference room during the daytime beginning in January, Puthoff said. May will also occasionally be at the school on weekend nights.

"He will be using this office to make phone calls and write reports," Puthoff said. "If anything should occur, he will be right here as opposed to a few minutes away. We will really benefit from this increased police presence."

In return, Puthoff added, the school will pay for any phone bills May may incur while at the school. The chief will also have a parking spot in the school's north lot.

"It will be nice to have a cruiser in the lot, especially during weekend nights," high school principal Brian Fortkamp said. "We're not going to have some kid doing donuts in the lot if he sees May's cruiser there."

Puthoff said calls to the police department will be forwarded to the school office when May is there.

"Our phone line is tapped into theirs," Rockford Police Sgt. Bryan Stetler told the newspaper this morning.

"We have over 20 portable radios here at the school, plus one in each of the school buses and one in both police cruisers, so as soon as we hear there is an issue, Chief May will simultaneously hear it," Puthoff said.

Fortkamp told board members he was inspired by a similar arrangement in St. Henry.

"They've been doing really well with their program," he said, adding the district would not have been able to afford to hire a security officer without this arrangement.

"This is going to be a really good program," Puthoff said. "We help each other out here in Rockford. That's just how it is in a small town."

Puthoff added he was unsure if the board needed to act on the program but wanted members to be aware of its existence.

Board members also,

• heard elementary math teacher Ben Neff talk about the use of technology in his classroom. Neff enthusiastically explained the benefits of the new Surface Pro tablets. "The tablets have been a great investment," he said. "Even if we can get information across without this technology, these kids are going to need to know how to use it after graduation."

• discussed finances, with treasurer Debra Pierce noting the district has $6,012,845 in its checking account. "We're down $347,000 from October," she said, "But we're more than $1 million ahead from this time last year. ... We're right where I thought we'd be. We're doing well spending money on the kids."

• approved agriculture teacher Alan Post's request for an overnight field trip to the National Soil Judging contest in Oklahoma City, Okla., May 2-5. The trip will include four FFA students.

• thanked board president Kim Brandt for 15 years of service. Brandt chose not to run for re-election and will be replaced by Jeff Armstrong in January.

• heard Parkway's show choir perform a collection of Christmas classics.

• had an executive session to investigate charges or complaints against an employee, official or student and confidential matters under federal/state laws, statutes and security arrangements. No action was taken.