Students and visitors to several of Kennewick's elementary schools will see new faces amongst this year's staff, including our new school safety officers.

Kennewick School District (KSD) is in the process of adding school safety officers to all of its elementary schools. Five of the 18 open positions have so far been filled and the district will continue to hire as qualified individuals are found.

School safety officers are KSD employees whose positions are funded by the KSD Educational Program & Operations Levy that was passed in February 2023.

Their role is to be a visible presence in schools, building relationships with students and staff, protecting students and making sure everyone goes home safe. School safety officers also conduct non-traditional security such as security checks and involvement in emergency preparedness, training and regular school drills.

The program is administered in partnership with the Kennewick Police Department (KPD), which is involved in the hiring process and completes background investigation checks on school safety officer applicants. KPD facilitates advanced level training to those selected for these positions in firearms, active shooter scenarios and de-escalation techniques. KPD also provides access to police radio channels for emergency situations.

All five of the school safety officers hired are retired members of law enforcement, all having held peace officer certification. They bring a collective 118 years of law enforcement experience into their new roles. Some previously worked for KPD.

Each officer will cover two locations until enough officers can be hired to cover all elementary schools. Locations were prioritized by enrollment and police activity in the area. Currently, school safety officers are at Amistad/ECEAP Preschool, Amon Creek, Cascade, Eastgate, Edison, Fuerza, Hawthorne, Sage Crest, Vista, and Westgate/Keewaydin Discovery Center.

 

Meet Our School Safety Officers

Scott Child previously worked as a bus driver for KSD after retiring as a police commander from KPD with 31 years of service, as well as corrections officer experience. He will be assigned to Amistad Elementary/ECEAP and Eastgate Elementary.

 

Berry Duty will be at Westgate Elementary, the Keewaydin Discovery Center and Cascade Elementary. He served KPD for over 24 years as an undercover narcotics agent and as a team leader in hostage and crisis negotiation on the SWAT team. Before that, he was a corrections officer for the Benton County Sheriff.

 

Jeff Quackenbush began his career in the U.S. Army and attended the U.S. Army Military Police Academy, later becoming an explosive detection dog handler and trainer in the Middle East. He later worked for the Benton County Sheriff for 15 years as a K9 patrol deputy and after that in other security-related roles for U.S. government contractors. He will be posted at Edison Elementary and Fuerza Elementary.

 

Stanton Howard served KPD for over 21 years as a motorcycle patrol officer in addition to being a detective and collision investigator. He also has background in the United States Marine Corps and was awarded a Meritorious Service Medal. Howard is assigned to Hawthorne Elementary and Sage Crest Elementary.

 

Randy Hicks retired from the Salem Police Department after 26.5 years of service and has subsequently worked in a number of security roles, most recently as a campus security officer at Columbia Basin College. Hicks will serve Vista Elementary and Amon Creek Elementary.