Anxious Coweta County parents will have to wait a least a week to find out if police officers will be present in all four of the county's middle schools this year.

County administrator Theron Gay told the Coweta County Board of Commissioners Tuesday morning that school officials had agreed to fund half the salaries for new resource officers and also to pay for the officers' vehicles.

But until Gay had the actual written contract in his hand, he did not want to commit the county to anything and asked the commissioners to delay the vote another week.

At an earlier meeting, Sheriff Mike Yeager estimated the cost of funding the three new officers at just over $150,000 a year. The cost includes salaries, benefits and equipment, along with a vehicle for each officer.

Adding three new officers would greatly improve the security at the schools, the sheriff added.

“This year we had a problem at East Coweta Middle School and the resource officer was at Madras Middle. That's a long way to drive,” he said.

The sheriff's department was able to send an officer to East Coweta Middle, but Yeager said the real solution is having an officer at each school.

The county currently shares the personnel costs of the one middle school resource officer with the Coweta County Board of Education.

The commissioners hailed the program as one that is truly necessary.

“Middle school is probably where a child is the most impressionable,” said Commissioner Robert Wood.

Commissioner Vernon “Mutt” Hunter said he had suggested funding the middle school resource officers a few years ago, but the proposal was dropped.

He said he was glad to see it back before the commission and said the idea has his full support.

The commission is expected to receive the school system's written support by the end of the week and vote on the proposal at their July 13 meeting.

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