Evesham Township and the Evesham Police Department have taken what Mayor Randy Brown called a “first of its kind” step by offering to fully fund the current program that places Evesham Police officers in Evesham’s schools.
Currently the township and district have a shared services agreement for the program, which Evesham officials say costs $500,000, with the township paying $300,000 and the district paying $200,000.
However, at a series of community meetings several weeks ago, the district announced that it might seek a nearly $700,000 public referendum vote this November to pay for an expansion of that program — a notion that township officials have balked at.
Brown noted that Evesham Police Chief Christopher Chew has not approved the expansion the district seeks, and Chew has previously said he believes the current agreement provides more than adequate police coverage for the district’s schools.
As such, Brown said the move by Evesham Township and Evesham Police to fund the full $500,000 cost of the current agreement would continue to ensure the safety of district’s children, teachers and staff.
With the next meeting the Evesham Township Board of Education scheduled for Thursday, March 17, Brown said he hoped the BOE would drop the potential referendum question when approving its tentative budget.
“We will handle the safety of our kids in schools for the 2016–2017 school year,” Brown said.
Chew said the current program has been an “overwhelming success” and noted that one of his department’s primary goals has always been the protection of the township’s children, especially after the incident that occurred at Van Zant Elementary School in December.
During that incident a 14-year-old male positioned himself outside the school during after-school hours while holding a replica handgun in attempt to commit suicide by having police kill him.
Although the male was captured alive and police believe he had no intent to harm the school’s children, the incident did prompt the increase in police presence at district’s schools that is currently ongoing.
“We see what happens across the country and we could not let that happen in Evesham Township,” Chew said.
Chew also highlighted other benefits to the program, and said from from Dec. 16 through Feb. 26, officers conducted 23 well-being and truancy checks, assisted in classroom instruction 28 times, conducted 17 criminal investigations, conducted three security briefings and handled three motor vehicle violations.
Brown also said he was hopeful that with the township and police department fully funding the current agreement of police in schools it might allow the district to save enough funds to put to rest the idea of potentially closing any school within the district as a means to save money.
At the district’s earlier community meetings the possibility of closing Evans Elementary School in the near future was also discussed, with district officials citing declining enrollment numbers throughout the district and a potential savings of $1.4 million dollars from the closure.
“It’s so important, as we know, the school structure in Evesham,” Brown said. “The neighborhood schools were created decades ago to service the communities of which they are in the middle of.”
