JT police offer help to district

Jim Thorpe could be the latest area school district taking the next step in addressing security within its buildings.

During a Jim Thorpe Borough Council workshop Thursday night, Police Chief Joe Schatz detailed a plan for his department to deploy a part-time officer to the school district for 32 hours each week.

“We think it’s a good start,” Schatz said. “With the shootings that have been taking place in synagogues and schools, we thought it would be a good idea to have armed security detail.”

The officer would fall under the detail of the police department with the district paying for the position. Schatz estimated the cost at $20 per hour. The school district would assign which building the officer would be at for that particular day.

“This is in the early stages,” Schatz said. “It hasn’t gone before the Jim Thorpe school board yet. We have met with the district’s security director and administration, and we’ll be meeting again next week to let them know what our feelings are.”

Schatz said he would like to eventually see an officer in each building in the district.

“Our goal is to make sure the students are safe,” he said.

Greg Strubinger, a Jim Thorpe teacher and borough council president, applauded the idea.

“Working there, it is something I am definitely in favor of,” he said. “I think it’s something that should have been done prior to this.”

Borough Manager Maureen Sterner warned that the hours worked by the officer couldn’t exceed part-time status or the borough would be required to pay health insurance per the Affordable Care Act.

“The solicitor would like to see something in the contract saying the full-time officers agree to this because there is language in their contract that they get a first right of refusal,” Sterner said.

In response, Mayor Mike Sofranko said he already broached the topic with his full-time officers.

“Our full-time guys are not going to block anything that involved the protection of students,” he said. “They have made that abundantly clear. This is something very important to them as well.”

Borough council is slated to take a vote on the plan at a future meeting. They next meet on Thursday.