Albany Schools To Pause Police Tradition

ALBANY, Ore. (AP) – Students in Albany public schools will no longer be greeted by police officers on the first day of school after some students and their families expressed fear and anxiety because of the officers’ presence last week.

The Albany Democrat-Herald reports rumors circulating on social media prompted superintendent Melissa Goff to release a statement Wednesday addressing the district’s decision to at least temporarily discontinue the tradition.

Goff said the lack of officers assigned to campuses, often called school resource officers, is unrelated to the decision and was a result of shortfalls in Albany’s city budget and staffing challenges in the Albany Police Department.