KENNEBUNK — There will be four new School Resource Officers at RSU 21 in the fall, bringing the number of SROs in the district to six.

That means each of the schools in the district will have the services of an officer on site. The four new officers will serve in the elementary schools.

“It is one of the safest ways to protect schools,” said Kennebunk Police Chief Robert MacKenzie.

MacKenzie said having School Resource Officers can be a deterrent and gives the department the ability to act quickly when they need to.

As well, he said the presence of SROs in schools builds relations with young people.

“That is extremely important in this day and age,” MacKenzie said.

Kennebunkport Police Chief Craig Sanford agreed.

“Someone internally in the schools, day in and out, can see things we wouldn’t see on an occasional basis,” said Sanford. “And having exposure to law enforcement early on is a positive thing.”

Sanford also pointed out the immediate response ability, should a situation develop that requires a police presence.

RSU 21 voters approved a school budget that included 75 percent of the cost of the four additional SROs, one for each elementary school. As well, with the intention of using the SROs during summers and vacation weeks instead of hiring reserve officers, selectmen in both Kennebunk and Kennebunkport voted to support 25 percent of the cost in the 2020 budget development process, said a news release form the district.

Kennebunk announced the hiring of two of the four new officers earlier this week, following an internal posting. Chosen to support Sea Road School and Kennebunk Elementary School were Audra Higgins and Jason McClure.

Kennebunkport will fill two SRO positions at Consolidated School and Mildred L. Day School. Sanford said the department will hire internally and plans to conduct interviews early in July.

The district hopes to have the new SROs in place for the beginning of the school year, but noted in the news release that there could be a gap, because the police departments will have to hire and train replacement officers.

The four will join Nate Jones, Kennebunkport SRO serving the Middle School of the Kennebunks and Mark Carney, Kennebunk SRO serving Kennebunk High School. The team will attend a National School Resource Officer training program this summer in Oakland, as well as a School Resource Officer Summit at Cony High School in August.

Biddeford has also beefed up the police presence in the schools, naming an SRO in January to serve Biddeford Primary School, Biddeford Intermediate School, John F. Kennedy School, the Alternative Pathways Center and St. James School. The city already had SROs at Biddeford Middle School and Biddeford High School.

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 324-4444 (local call in Sanford) or 282-1535, ext. 327 or [email protected].