News Photo by Julie Goldberg Rogers City Area Schools Liaison Officer Matt Bisson, right, talks with Rogers City High School students Austin Bialas and Joshua Kamyszek during the school’s lunch hour recently.

ROGERS CITY — School districts in Northeast Michigan have had their ups and downs when it comes to bringing a police presence into their buildings. Some have had success because of taxpayer support, while others have struggled because of funding issues.

Rogers City Area Schools has had a liaison officer since 2002. Officer Matt Bisson, a Rogers City police officer and the district’s liaison officer since the beginning, said it’s been a journey of great things and making it work for what the school and the community both need.

There is also a liaison officer at Onaway Area Community Schools and Posen Consolidated Schools, and that’s because voters approved a countywide property tax to pay for the service. The millage is on the ballot every four years for Presque Isle County voters. Property owners pay 0.33 mills, or about $16.50 a year for the owner of a $100,000 house, for the service.

There are benefits to having liaison officers in school hallways. The National Association of School Resource Officers says the officer can help students get the help they need if they are struggling, help students and staff feel safe when at school, and help prevent property damage in the school and student injuries.

Bisson said he works closely with the liaison officers in the other Presque Isle County districts.

“Between the three of us, we come up with different ideas and do different things and think of ways to make our schools better, so that’s just a never-ending, evolving process that led us up to this year,” Bisson said.

Rogers City Superintendent Nick Hein said the county has put the schools in a position to succeed more than most places by approving the millage every four years.

“It says the county is proactive, instead of reactive,” Bisson said. “We’re ahead of the game, and that says a lot about our community.”

Hein said the district has been doing lockdown drills long before other schools were doing them because of Bisson. Hein said the personality has to be right for someone to be a liaison officer.

“You obviously always want students to grow up and respect the uniform … but you always want kids to grow up to learn that the person is there to help you,” Hein said.

The fact that Bisson stays up-to-date and exceeds trainings and drills that are required for the school system is tremendous for the district, Hein said.

Having someone there to enforce the little things makes it a better environment, Hein said. He said the most important aspect is having the safest options for students, and having a resource like a liaison officer does just that.

While the Presque Isle County schools have liaison officers, other districts in the Northeast Michigan region have struggled to bring that presence in.

Alcona Community Schools has had a liaison officer throughout the past two years in what was once a partnership between Alcona County and the school system. However, after Alcona County voters twice rejected a property tax proposal for county operations, the county board there was forced to pull funding for the service. Alcona schools Superintendent Dan O’Connor said that, since Jan. 1, his district pays 100 percent for the officer.

O’Connor said his board of education believes in the services liaison officers provide and students and staff want it, so the district figured out a way to make it happen.

The district’s liaison officer, Officer Jason Dellar of the Alcona County Sheriff’s Department, is a younger officer, and O’Connor said he’s done a fantastic job with the students and staff. O’Connor said the district wants to continue utilizing Dellar as effectively as possible.

“We also value the mentoring and relationships developed by having a law enforcement officer there, as well, and just be able to be a presence for our students and staff to ensure that the educational days go as smoothly as possible,” O’Connor said.

O’Connor said he wants a liaison officer in the district long-term and hopes the district’s financial situation stays positive and allows that officer to stay in the buildings.

Hillman Community Schools and Atlanta Community Schools, meanwhile, do not have liaison officers, and Carl Seiter, superintendent of both districts, said money is the biggest issue. He said it would cost between $30,000 to $50,000 each year to fund a liaison officer in the districts.

“I would love to have one, but it all comes down to money,” Seiter said.

Alpena Public Schools has a liaison officer at Alpena High School and Thunder Bay Junior High School, but not at its six elementary schools, because of a lack of funding.

The district is seeking permission from voters on May 7 to sell $63 million in bonds for major facilities upgrades that will include a focus on school security, but bond money can’t be used to pay salaries for liaison officers.

Julie Goldberg can be reached at 989-358-5688 or jgoldberg@thealpenanews.com. Follow her on Twitter @jkgoldberg12.