Friday, June 25, 1999 |
The Peachtree City Police Department has announced that a school resource officer will be assigned to J.C. Booth Middle School beginning this fall, the first such officer at a middle school in Fayette County. The move is being made in cooperation with the Fayette County Board of Education, according to a written statement by the police department. We are now able to assign a highly qualified police officer to bridge the gap that exists between elementary school and high school, said police chief James Murray. The department already has a resource officer at McIntosh High School and DARE officers at each elementary school in the city. I feel it is imperative that the police department take an active role in middle school to provide a safe learning environment, and to act as a role model for our most important asset our children, said Murray. Officer Heather Horne, a two-year veteran of the police department, has been selected as the new school resource officer for Booth Middle after extensive interviews by police and school officials. She grew up in Peachtree City and attended Booth, where she was a cheerleader, before graduating from McIntosh. She earned a bachelor of science degree in early childhood education from West Georgia College and was a teacher for a year before joining the department. Horne, who is a certified Advanced EMT, will attend the school resource officer certification program at the Georgia Police Academy in July. We are extremely fortunate to have an individual who is qualified in both police work and education, said Murray. Officer Horne will be an outstanding school resource officer and role model for the school. The police department is fully funding the position. A grant has been applied for, Murray said, but the city decided to go ahead with the position whether or not the grant was issued. Booth is the only middle school in Peachtree City.
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