WABASH, Ind. – Although its had a Student Resource Office in its schools for quite some time, Wabash City Schools’ school board Tuesday night took a step towards making the SRO position within the schools more official, Okaying an agreement with the City of Wabash on what roles the position will fill.
Several officers from the Wabash City Police Department have fulfilled the SRO role in some capacity in the past, but now, officer Sam Hipskind will serve as the exclusive resource officer.
“What this contract will do is bring that continuity, where in the past we’ve had different officers, and they’ve been great, but it’s the continuity of having that same face, that same personality to build relationships with kids,” Wabash City Schools Superintendent Jason Callahan said. “The more Sam is in there, the more he can get to know the kids. A lot of this is about relationships. We talk about the three Rs – relationships, relevance and rigor, and the bottom of that is relationships. Sam can bring that. We know he has that personality and can build those relationships with kids. So, what this contract does is build that continuity.”
The City will vote to OK the agreement at its March 1 Board of Works meeting.
The board also Tuesday:
- Approved the recommendation from high school principal Kyle Wieland for middle school math teacher Tyler Olson to move into the newly created posiiton of business teacher.
“Tyler Olson is an entrepreneur in his own right,” Callahan said. “He’s a young man who has had a couple different careers, from being a caddy on the PGA Tour to working in a big city and having some business experience, finance experiences to be able to share with kids in Wabash, Ind. The bottom line is he’s a kids first kind of guy. He will work to build relationships with kids, and teach them that there’s a lot they can do business-wise from Wabash, Ind., that maybe they don’t have to go to a big city to do.”
- Approved the retirements of teachers Jo Nordman and Tina Dirig effective at the end of the school year.
“We have a philosophy of hire to retire, and I think both Mrs. Nordman and Mrs. Dirig are both examples of that, where they came in – and especially with Tina, who has taught 30 years in sixth grade,” Callahan said. “That’s continuity. That’s good for kids. They’ll be missed. I wish them well in retirement.
