Snoqualmie Police Chief Brian Lynch notified the Snoqualmie Valley School District that effective Sept. 3, the department would not fill the school resource officer (SRO) position due to lack of adequate staffing, according to an Aug. 21 press release.

Providing direct law enforcement support to the district and school administrators since 2013, the SRO is responsible for the safety and well-being of approximately 7,100 students in the 11 schools within the district.

“The SRO can often be found meeting with students to provide positive mentorship or to assist with criminal matters being reported by them,” Lynch wrote. “On a typical day, our SRO will frequently respond to students in the community who can benefit from a police officer they know and trust. Lastly, our SRO occasionally can be found teaching in a classroom about what it means to be a police officer.”

Before the pausing of the position, there was one SRO position in the department, filled by Officer Austin Gutwein. Gutwein spent most of his time at Mt. Si High School while also responding to calls at every other school in the district, but has been reassigned back to the patrol division.

“We understand the importance of having a school resource officer on-site to ensure the safety and security of the students, staff, and faculty,” Lynch said in the press release. “Rest assured that we are committed to finding a solution to this temporary issue promptly.”

The department is looking into hiring a lateral school resource officer to fill the open position, allowing a fully trained SRO to assume the position rather than assigning a current officer to the role, Lynch said.

In the meantime, the police department is “committed to having a presence at Mount Si High School with patrol officers who work during school hours conducting routine, proactive check-ins with staff members and connecting with students,” the press release reads.

“We understand the staffing challenges our partners at the Snoqualmie Police Department are facing, and we will continue to work closely with them to ensure our students, staff and school remain in a safe and supportive learning environment,” said Dan Schlotfeldt, the Snoqualmie Valley School District Superintendent. “We deeply appreciate their support over the years and are committed to restoring this important position as soon as possible.”