Vancouver School Board set to vote on police officers in schools

Members of the Vancouver School Board will vote Monday night on reinstating the Student Liaison Officer (SLO) program, which places police officers in schools in the district.

It was a key campaign promise of Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim’s ABC Vancouver party that swept to power in October’s civic election.

ABC now has a majority on the school board.

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The VSB officer program was disbanded by previous school board members in 2021 after it was put under review in the wake of the murder of George Floyd in the United States.

Trustees in favour of removing the program at that time said the presence of police in schools has a negative impact on BIPOC and other marginalized students, who are more likely to see armed officers as a threat than a source of protection or support.

The Human Rights Commissioner is among those speaking out against re-instating the program, saying there are other ways to address safety and security in schools.

In a recommendation directed to the British Columbia School Trustees Association, commissioner Kasari Govender is asking for school districts not to reinstate the cancelled program.

Govender says she is specifically concerned about the potential negative outcomes for marginalized students.

She says unless school districts can prove why police officers should be in schools, she recommends putting a stop to the programs.

“Unless, and until, there is sufficient research to show the value of these programs, putting the interests, and needs, and perspectives of racialized children and their families…at the center of our research,” she said.