Gillett Police Officer Ashley Hull spent Jan. 2 getting settled into her new office at Gillett Secondary School. She also has a space at Gillett Elementary School on the other side of the campus.
Hull was appointed school resource officer (SRO) last month and will patrol the corridors of the two buildings, interacting with students and staff for the rest of the academic year as a pilot project.
City and school officials, and Oconto County Sheriff Todd Skarban, have been in discussions for close to a year about establishing an SRO. The school board approved $80,000 in its 2024-25 budget to provide an officer who would work with students in Gillett schools similar to the program in Suring, where Deputy Jess Keplinger serves as the SRO.
Skarban and the board agreed on a plan to have the district cover 75% of the salary and other costs of the program, with the county picking up the other 25%, but the contract could not be completed in time to be included in the county’s 2025 budget.
They then turned to the idea of a pilot project under the aegis of the city, where Hull had been promoted to full time in July after 14 years as a part-time officer. She had also gone through training to serve as a school resource officer, a position that covers two of her career goals.
“I always wanted to get into teaching, architecture or police work,” Hull said.
She had spent a few days at the school in December while Skarban, Superintendent Nathan Hanson and Mayor Jonathan Blaskowski worked out the final details of the pilot, which passed the school board Dec. 19 and a special meeting of the Gillett City Council on Dec. 20.
“I hope it can make a difference,” Hull said. “The teachers and students seem to like it, having an officer in school.”
During the regular monthly city council meeting Jan. 2, Alderperson Irene Drake said she heard good things about Hull’s first day in the school from Dean of Students Bryan Brown.
“He had a big smile on his face; he was happy,” Drake said.
As part of the pilot, the sheriff’s department is covering nights and weekend shifts to supplement the efforts of the three-person Gillett Police Department, for Hull to serve in the schools full time.
After the end of the school year, city, council and school officials will get together to discuss how the program could be continued for the long term.
wbluhm@newmedia-wi.com
Gillett SRO hopes to make a difference
