Returning from winter break, RHS students greeted new School Resource Officer (SRO) Arnold Aubrey Jan. 2 as he joined the school’s staff, after officer Robert Jacaruso departed.

The SRO program is a partnership between the Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD) and MCPS that provides a ¨law enforcement officer trained in emergency preparedness, crisis management, community policing concepts, and problem solving” to each high school in the county, according to the MCPD website.

Being the active officer in schools was not always Aubrey’s line of work. Prior to being an SRO, Aubrey was a street officer–he has been an officer for 27 years. Aubrey was assigned to multiple other schools in the county, most recently coming from Poolesville High School.

Aubrey is working hard to get to know RHS through daily interactions with students and staff. Change is a big part of being assigned a new job, he said.

“You’re the new kid on the block, so it is a growing thing. You’re trying to get to know the students, it’s about learning the environment,” Aubrey said.

Although Aubrey is dedicated to being a presence at RHS, he has an active life outside of the building. In his free time Aubrey rides motorcycles and is a part-time actor in community theater productions.

While riding motorcycles and being in the theater takes up lots of free time, Aubrey knows his SRO job is the most important.

An SRO works in schools to ensure safety and therefore spends a great deal of time with the security team. While the security guards’ primary role is to make sure school guidelines are being followed, SRO’s have more of a responsibility to the community as they are armed and trained in emergency preparedness.

“I think it is helpful because he [Aubrey] can answer questions that you guys [students] might have about things that go on,” security guard Kelly Mcdonnell.

Even though Aubrey has just been working at RHS for about a month, he has already made an impact on students and staff in the building by making sure to introduce himself to as many new faces as possible, he said.

¨It was cool to me when [Aubrey] introduced himself in the cafeteria on his first day at school,¨ junior Monica Blassou said. ¨I said more to him in his first day than I ever did to the last officer.¨

Aubrey is determined to make a difference in the students’ lives at his assigned schools, he said. Many students began talking to him just days after being introduced to RHS.

“The students bring so much to the table, not all of it is negative, but not all of it is positive,” Aubrey said.  “I learn as much from students as I give out.”