STURGIS, S.D. – The Sturgis City Council gave approval to the city manager Monday night to sign off on a grant that will be used to fund a second school resource officer for the Meade School District.
The money is courtesy of the COPS Hiring Program.
This officer will be utilized at the middle and elementary school in Sturgis. The current School Resource Officer is stationed at the Sturgis Brown High School.
Sturgis Police Chief Geody VanDewater says the new officer can be a new hire, rehire officer who was laid off or an officer who is scheduled to be laid off due to local budget restrictions.
The grant is for $125,000 over a three-year period with the City’s cash match for the amount of $81,991 over a three-year period.
Sturgis City Manager Daniel Ainslie says with this grant opportunity, the city can hire a new officer at a great savings to the community while having an increased safety presence at the schools.
