The School Resource Officer is a cooperative program that utilizes a uniformed police officer within the school systems in Camrose, Alberta. It is a joint effort with funding from Battle River School District, Elk Island Catholic Schools and the City of Camrose. It provides both a proactive and reactive resource for the schools within our city.
The School Resource Officer had it’s beginnings in 1996 with the inception of the D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program in the elementary schools. The DARE program in 2020 was replaced with a newer, up to date curriculum called C.O.R.E. The C.O.R.E. program is unique to Camrose and is taught to all students in grades three, six and nine. CORE revolves around one basic concept; Camrose Youth are the Core of our Community. As youth grow up in our community they become the core of our city. If we can educate and train our youth to make positive contributions to the people around them then our communities will be stronger. The C.O.R.E. Program is dedicated to helping youth develop positive attitudes and behaviors regarding their own health so they can better serve the people and community around them.
The School Resource Officer also maintains an active schedule of classes to high school students regarding drug and alcohol awareness, youth and the law and careers in policing. This is conducted in the Career and Life Management classes in the high school curriculum. The SRO also conducts classes to classes of various ages with topics including: bullying, bike safety, cyber safety, etc.
The School Resource Officer program is a very valuable tool for the Camrose Police Service to be proactive in our community and to build bonds with our CORE; our future adult residents.