Recently I had the opportunity to talk to our School Liaison Officer, Darren Rain, to find out what it is like to work with kids as a Police Liaison Officer.  This is his second year working at the high school, beginning last September. Selected from the Police Department to serve as Liaison officer, officer Rain finds this job interesting and a new sort of experience. He told me that it has exposed him to an entirely different side of law enforcement that he didn’t experience during patrol work or retail investigation. There are many differences between these two jobs, as while working on patrol, he didn’t experience all of these interactions with students.  When I asked Officer Rain about the best outcomes of his job, he responded that overall, it is about getting to know the kids, their families, and their stories.

Working directly with kids, he gets to know them better than he normally would on patrol, as he can see how their behavior may be the result of what happens to them. For example, some of the kids run away from home. Working with the kids allows him to find main causes behind their actions and adjust to the situation appropriately. The experiences he has had in a year and half has really changed how Mr. Rain deals with kids, and will use all he has learned from this job in the future.