Police in schools debate revived by proposed Ontario legislation [Video]

A new bill by the Ontario government would force some school boards to put police officers in schools, and it has revived a debate in Ottawa about the role of police in the school system.

The proposed legislation would require school boards to implement a school resource officer (SRO) program — which places officers in elementary and high schools — if one is offered by the local police service. It would go into effect in the next school year.

“I completely disagreed when the decision was made in a number of boards to withdraw [SROs] from the school,” Minister of Education Paul Calandra said at a Thursday news conference.

“We’re going to make sure that we work on doing it in a way that is beneficial to students and teachers.”

But some Ottawa trustees and advocates say the legislation would undermine local authority, and the presence of police would be more harmful than helpful to students.