Eastham School Committee Blocks Elementary School Resource Officer for FY27

EASTHAM -- January 13, 2026, Eastham School Committee declines to advance elementary school resource officer proposal. With no member willing to make a motion, the committee effectively killed a proposal for a full-time school resource officer at Eastham Elementary School for the FY27 budget cycle, as Police Chief Bohannon confirmed the position would require a newly created hire rather than a reassignment from existing staff. A committee member cited a 2023 Brookings Institute study finding that SROs increase gun-related incident reports by nearly 200 percent per 500 students and raise suspension rates by 12 students per 500, with disproportionate effects on students with disabilities and Black students. Public comment drew five speakers, including part-time paraprofessional Paralee Souza, who presented a petition of more than 100 signatures from school staff and families backing the SRO, and kindergarten teacher Amy Fry, who urged the committee to restore full-time kindergarten paraprofessionals to classrooms, a position she said other Nauset district elementary schools currently fund. The committee also received a preliminary FY27 operating budget for the school of just over $5.7 million, up from the roughly $4.8 million approved at last town meeting, with Superintendent Glenn Brand calling the figure preliminary and promising reductions before the February 10 meeting.