RRISD reinforces existing safety infrastructure 

Officially finalized in February 2020, the resolution confirming the formation of the Round Rock ISD Police Department (RRISD PD) marked the end to a near three-year timeline to establish long term district safety and security. Inter-agency partnership between local law enforcement including the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office, the City of Round Rock Police Department, and the Austin Community College Police Department supplied school resource officers (SROs) to campuses until the last partnership terminated at the end of the 2020-2021 school year. The first RRISD PD officers were hired in September 2020, under the board’s “desires to employ commissioned peace officers” into a fully-operational police department as of June 2021.

Superintendent Dr. Hafedh Azaiez emphasized confidence in existing routines such as locking doors during the school day and employing video intercom technology to monitor visitor entry. Azaiez also noted plans to utilize an $815,311 grant provided by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to install a bullet-resistant film on glass windows and doors in all elementary schools. 

In the aftermath of the May 2018 Santa Fe High School shooting in Santa Fe, Texas, 17 laws were passed by Gov. Greg Abbott to address school safety. Particularly, House Bill 2195 (HB 2195) mandated active shooter training for school-stationed officers. Senate Bill 1707 (SB 1707) stated that all school district peace officers, SROs, and security personnel should refrain from practicing “routine student discipline or school administrative tasks” and avoid “contact with students unrelated to law enforcement duties.” 

RRISD PD has stood by current procedures, which includes emergency drills, threat-assessment training, and the anonymous alerts app to report suspicious behavior. The police department did not return multiple requests for comment, but reposted recommendations in a statement shared by the National Association of School Resource Officers (NASRO). The association, which established the “triad” concept of school policing, attaches SROs to the responsibilities of teachers, informal counselors, and law enforcement officers. 

“Carefully selected, specifically trained SROs can and have prevented and mitigated school violence,” NASRO said in their statement. “This includes intervening before violence begins and stopping it quickly when prevention was impossible. Every school at every level must therefore have a carefully selected, specifically trained SRO on its campus whenever school is in session.”