Novato School District Votes Down Campus Police Funding: Report

Novato CA

17 June, 2021

5:04 PM

Description

NOVATO, CA – Uniformed officers may continue patrolling Novato public schools in the upcoming school year, but the local school district isn't going to pay for it. The Novato Unified School District's board by a 6-1 margin voted against funding its school resource officer program, The Marin Independent Journal reports. The district in its previous two budgets paid close to $158,000 for one of its two school resource officers through a federal grant that has since expired according to the report. But the schools won't be entirely without a uniformed officer according to the report. Any money budgeted towards campus policing will instead go toward mental health services, NUSD Superintendent Kris Cosca told the IJ. He added that any district money already earmarked for the police program would be "redirected" to mental health services. The city will pay for at least one and possibly two officers that will be assigned to NUSD campuses, Novato police Chief Matthew McCaffrey told the news outlet. Read more in The Marin Independent Journal