SRO Memorandum of Understanding - Arkansas Center for School Safety Arkansas Center for School Safety

In accordance with Acts 551 and 622 of 2021;

(1) A public school district or open enrollment charter school board of directors that accepts a school resource officer shall enter into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the local law enforcement agency with jurisdiction, or adopt policies and procedures if the school district has an institutional law enforcement officer as described by § 6-13-1701 et seq., that governs the school resource officer and includes without limitation:

(A) The financial responsibilities of each party;
(B) The chain of command;
(C) The process for the selection of school resource officers;
(D) The process for the evaluation of school resource officers;
(E) The training requirements for school resource officers; and
(F) The roles and responsibilities of school resource officers, which shall include without limitation:
- (i) Clarification of the school resource officer’s involvement in student discipline;
- (ii) The use of physical restraints or chemical sprays;
- (iii) The use of firearms; and
- (iv) Making arrests on the school campus.

(2) The memorandum of understanding shall be based on a model memorandum created by the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) and the Arkansas Center for School Safety (ACSS), which shall include without limitation the requirements listed above.

(3) The Division of Elementary and Secondary Education shall promulgate rules specifying how the adoption of a memorandum of understanding or policies and procedures shall be verified.

The model MOU, developed by DESE and ACSS, can be found at this link: AR SRO MOU 2022 – With Appendix Final 4-7-22.docx

The Act 551 and 622 of 2021 FAQs, can be found at this link: Act 551 and 622 FAQs.

If you have any questions about this document, please contact Wilson Short at [email protected] or 501-570-8098.