SLEPS LEA Survey

Attachment 1: SLEPS LEA Survey

OMB No. 1121-XXXX: Approval Expires XX/XX/XXXX

U.S. Department of Justice

Bureau of Justice Statistics

2019 Survey of Law Enforcement Personnel in Schools (SLEPS)
Law Enforcement Agency (LEA) Survey

In correspondence about this survey, please refer to the Agency ID number printed below. (Please correct any error in name and mailing address in the box below. If the information is correct, please check the box in the bottom right hand corner.)

Agency ID:      

Password:      

Name:      

Title:      

Agency:      

The information is correct

INFORMATION SUPPLIED BY
Name		Title
Telephone		Fax
Email

INSTRUCTIONS

• This survey should be completed by a representative who is most knowledgeable about your agency’s employment of and policies regarding law enforcement officers working in schools.

• This survey uses the following terms and definitions:

• School Resource Officer (SRO): a sworn law enforcement officer who is assigned to work in any public K-12 school.

• SRO program: your agency’s employment of one or more sworn law enforcement officer(s) assigned to work in any public K-12 school.

• The Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, as amended (34 U.S.C. § 10132), authorizes this information collection. Although this survey is voluntary, we need your participation to make the results comprehensive, accurate, and timely. We greatly appreciate your assistance.

• If you have any questions about this survey, visit the SLEPS web site at https://bjslecs.org/sleps2019 or contact Dustin Williams at RTI by telephone at (866) 309-4564 or by email at sleps@rti.org.

BURDEN STATEMENT

Federal agencies may not conduct or sponsor an information collection, and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information, unless it displays a currently valid OMB Control Number. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 30 minutes per response, including time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate, or any other aspects of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to the Director, Bureau of Justice Statistics, 810 Seventh Street NW, Washington, DC 20531.

Law Enforcement Agency Characteristics

1. Which best describes your agency? Mark only one.

• Police department, municipal

• Police department, county

• State/highway department

• Sheriff’s Office

• Tribal

• Independent School District

• Other (please specify):

2. As of September 1, 2019, how many sworn full-time officers with general arrest powers were employed by your agency? ______

3. Does your agency employ any officers that are primarily assigned to work in any public K-12 school?

• Yes Go to Question 4

• No This completes your response. Please return your survey to RTI.

SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER Program Characteristics

4. In what year did your agency start assigning officers to public schools? ______________

5. As of September 1, 2019, what are the funding sources for your SRO program? Mark all that apply.

• Federal grant

• State/Local grant

• Law enforcement agency

• School district

• Other (please specify):

6. How many of the following public schools, including charter schools, are served by your SRO program?

   Type of public school:	Number
   a. Elementary schools (lowest grade is not higher than grade 3 and the highest grade is not higher than grade 8)
   b. Middle schools (lowest grade is not lower than grade 4 and the highest grade is not higher than grade 9)
   c. High schools (lowest grade is not lower than grade 9 and the highest grade is not higher than grade 12)
   d. Combined schools (e.g., K-8, K-12)

7. Does your SRO program also serve private schools?

• Yes

• No

8. Do the majority of officers in your SRO program serve on a single permanent assignment (i.e., only serve as an SRO) or rotate to other assignments (e.g., juvenile detective, routine patrol)? Mark only one.

• Single permanent assignment

• Rotate to other assignments

SRO Policies and ASSIGNED Responsibilities

9. Does your agency have a departmental policy specifically for your SRO program?

• Yes

• No

10. With how many entities (school districts and/or individual schools) does your agency have an agreement (e.g., memorandum of understanding, contractual or verbal agreement, legislation)? Enter the number of entities by type of agreement in the table below.

	Number with formal agreement in place	Number with no formal agreement in place	Not applicable (Independent School District Police Department)
School districts
Individual schools

If your agency does not have a departmental policy specifically for your SRO program (Question 9 was ‘No’) and does not have any formal agreements in place (you put ‘0’ in Question 10 in the formal agreement column), go to Question 13.

11. Which of the following best describes the type of agreement in place between your agency and the school/school district served by the majority of your SROs? Mark only one.

• Memorandum of understanding (MOU)

• Contractual agreement, such as through a grant or other basis

• Legislation

• Verbal agreement

• Other (please specify): ___________________________

12. Are the following SRO program characteristics specified in either your internal departmental policy or in the formal agreement between your agency and the school/school district served by the majority of your SROs?

    SRO program characteristic:	Yes	No
    a. Expectations for SROs when working with students		
    b. Expectations regarding citations and arrests by SROs		
    c. Expectations regarding collaboration between school officials and SROs		
    d. Goals of the SRO program		
    e. Number of officers in your SRO program		
    f. Primary functions (e.g., law enforcement, teaching, mentoring/counseling) of SROs		
    g. Procedures for resolving disagreements between school officials and SROs		
    h. Requirement of regular meetings between school officials and SROs		
    i. Responsibilities/duties of the school		
    j. Role of SROs with school discipline		
    k. Schedule (e.g., before the school day begins, the full school day, etc.) that officers in your SRO program will spend at school		
    l. Supervision or administrative control of SROs		
    m. Use of firearms		
    n. Use of less-lethal equipment		

13. Are SROs required to inform school executive staff about any of the following actions occurring on a school campus?

Action:	Yes	No
a. Arrest of school employee during school hours		
b. Arrest of student during school hours		
c. Conduct criminal investigation		
d. Question school employees during school hours		
e. Question students during school hours		
f. Search premises		
g. Search student		
h. Use of firearms		
i. Use of less-lethal equipment		
j. Use of restraint on student that does not result in arrest		

14. Are SROs allowed to conduct interviews of students outside the presence of a parent or guardian without first obtaining permission from a parent or guardian?

• Yes

• No

SRO Recruitment, Training, and Supervision

15. Do schools participate in the selection process when your agency recruits and hires SROs?

• Yes

• No Go to Question 17

16. How does the school participate? Mark all that apply.

• By providing feedback on SROs after placement to help determine a “good fit”

• By reviewing SRO candidates prior to selection

• Through active recruitment of officers

• Through participation in requirements/selection criteria

• Other (please specify):

17. How does your agency select officers for the SRO program? Mark all that apply.

• As a result of input and/or recommendations by school(s)/school district

• By nomination of officers from within the department

• Through an application process external to the department (i.e. officers are hired specifically to be SROs)

• Through an application process from within the department

• Through assignment as part of regular duty schedule

• Other (please specify):

18. How often do supervisors visit schools to observe SROs?

• At least once a week

• Several times a month

• Once a month

• Several times a year

• Once a year

• Never

• Other (please specify):

19. Does your agency have access to data (e.g., number or type of incident) on any of the following measures related to SRO activities in the schools they serve?

Activity:	Yes	No
a. Arrests made by SRO		
b. Citations issued by SRO		
c. Classes/programs taught by SRO		
d. Mentoring activities performed by SRO		
e. Mentoring of faculty/staff performed by SRO		
f. Mentoring of parents/community performed by SRO		
g. Property crimes reported at school		
h. Reports of violence at school		
i. Substance violations recorded at school (e.g., possession, use, buying/selling)		
j. Suspensions recorded at school		
k. Use of force incidents		

SRO staffing

20. As of September 1, 2019, how many of the following personnel are primarily assigned to any public K-12 schools?

Type of personnel:	Number
a. Sworn officers
b. Nonsworn employees
c. Total

SWORN SROs
Please answer the following questions for the sworn officers who serve your SRO program.

21. Please provide the number of sworn SROs in your agency by race and ethnicity. The total number by race and the total number by ethnicity should match the number provided in Question 20a.

    Race:	Number
    a. White
    b. Black or African American
    c. American Indian or Alaska Native
    d. Asian
    e. Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
    f. Race not known
    g. TOTAL (SUM OF A-F)
    Ethnicity:
    h. Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin
    i. Not of Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin
    j. Ethnicity not known
    k. TOTAL (SUM of H-J)

22. Please provide the number of sworn SROs in your agency by sex. The total number should match the number provided in 20a.

    Sex:	Number
    a. Male
    b. Female
    c. TOTAL (SUM of A-B)

23. Do the sworn officers who are primarily assigned to public K-12 schools…

Characteristic:	All	Some	None
a. have arrest powers?			
b. receive specialized SRO training?			

If none of your agency’s sworn officers who are primarily assigned to schools receive specialized SRO training, go to Question 24.

24. Do any of the following entities provide SRO-specific training to sworn officers in your agency?

Entity:	Yes	No
a. Our agency itself (e.g., academy or in-service)		
b. School district		
c. State organization		
d. National organization (i.e., National Association of School Resource Officers)		
e. Other (please specify): __________________________		

TRAINING TOPICS REQUIRED FOR SWORN SROs

25. On which of the following law enforcement topics are sworn SROs required to receive training? Please include both training provided to all sworn officers and training provided specifically for SROs.

    Law enforcement activity/topic:	Yes	No
    a. De-escalation strategies and techniques		
    b. Gangs		
    c. Procedures for handling juvenile offenders		
    d. Responding to incidents in the classroom		
    e. Social media monitoring		
    f. Use of deadly force		
    g. Use of less-lethal force		

26. On which of the following prevention and planning topics are sworn SROs required to receive training? Please include both training provided to all sworn officers and training provided specifically for SROs.

    Prevention and planning topic/activity:	Yes	No
    a. Administering special safety programs (e.g., drugs, legal issues, crime awareness, and distracted driving)		
    b. Bullying deterrence		
    c. Crisis preparedness planning		
    d. Security audits/assessments of school campuses		
    e. Substance abuse recognition		
    f. Truancy intervention		

27. On which of the following social and behavioral topics are sworn SROs required to receive training? Please include both training provided to all sworn officers and training provided specifically for SROs.

Social and behavioral topic:	Yes	No
a. Child/adolescent psychology/development		
b. Conflict resolution		
c. Cultural sensitivity and/or cultural competency		
d. Mental health issues		
e. Mentoring staff, students, and/or families		
f. Positive school discipline (e.g., PBIS)		
g. Trauma-informed practices		
h. Working with students with disabilities		

ACTIVITIES PERFORMED BY SWORN SROs

28. Please indicate whether each law enforcement activity is required of any of your agency’s sworn SROs while on duty. Only mark ‘yes’ if the activity is included in your internal departmental policy, included in a formal agreement with schools/school districts, or expected by department executives.

    Law enforcement activity:	Yes	No
    a. Crisis preparedness planning		
    b. Issuing criminal citations		
    c. Making arrests		
    d. Patrolling school facilities		
    e. Responding to calls for service on the school campus		
    f. Responding to incidents in the classroom		
    g. Security audits/assessments of school campuses		
    h. Social media monitoring		

29. Please indicate whether each mentoring activity is required of any of your agency’s sworn SROs while on duty. Only mark ‘yes’ if the activity is included in your internal departmental policy, included in a formal agreement with schools/school districts, or expected by department executives.

    Mentoring activity:	Yes	No
    a. Advising school staff, students, or families (e.g., one-on-one, in a group, etc.)		
    b. Coaching athletic programs		
    c. Field trip chaperone		
    d. Supervising/coordinating non-athletic extra-curricular activities		
    e. Truancy intervention		

30. Please indicate whether each teaching activity is required of any of your agency’s sworn SROs while on duty. Only mark ‘yes’ if the activity is included in your internal departmental policy, included in a formal agreement with schools/school districts, or expected by department executives.

    Teaching activity:	Yes	No
    a. Administering special safety programs (e.g., drugs, legal issues, crime awareness, and distracted driving)		
    b. Conflict resolution		
    c. Faculty/staff in-service presentations		
    d. Parent organization presentations		

31. Which of the following equipment are issued to sworn SROs by your agency and which are allowed while on the school campus? Mark only one per row.

    Item:	Issued by agency		Not issued by agency
    	Allowed on campus	Not allowed	Allowed on campus	Not allowed
    a. Uniform				
    b. Firearm				
    c. Baton/nightstick				
    d. Body-worn camera				
    e. Conducted energy device (e.g., Taser)				
    f. Handheld metal detector wand				
    g. Hobble restraints				
    h. OC Spray/foam				
    i. Other (please specify): __________________________				

32. In addition to this survey, we provided you with a form to list all of the sworn officers from your jurisdiction who are assigned to work in K-12 public schools. We will use this list to randomly select some of these individual officers to receive a survey about activities they perform. Included on the form is guidance for anonymizing the list of officers should you prefer not to provide direct identification of the officers.

A copy of the survey that will be sent to selected SROs is available for your review at https://bjslecs.org/SRO-Preview.pdf.

Are you willing to provide this information?

• Yes Go to Question 32 and please complete the Officer Roster Form.

• No Please indicate why you are not willing to provide this information and return your survey to RTI:
  
  
  
  

33. For purposes of administrating the officer survey, we would like to have a single point of contact to distribute the officer survey. Please provide the following contact information for the person who will distribute the officer survey:

Name:

Title:

Address:

Phone: (______)______-

Email:

End

Thank You!

Thank you for participating in this survey. If you have any questions about this survey, please contact Dustin Williams at RTI by telephone at (866) 309-4564 or by email at sleps@rti.org.

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