CAMBRIDGE, Md. - The City of Cambridge has approved funding for a school resource officer at Mace's Lane Middle School.
Officer Christine LaMonica is the first resource officer to be assigned to a middle or elementary school in Cambridge.
Cambridge Police Chief Justin Todd says the need for an officer was there.
"Over 150 calls of service we handled last year at that middle school," Todd said. "I felt that we needed to dedicate an officer there for the safety of the children and also a resource for the children."
LaMonica has been at the school for nearly a month.
With the Cambridge City Council approving $44,000 in funding, Principal Patricia Prosser hopes LaMonica is here to stay.
"If we needed a police officer or sort of advice, we would have to call CPD. You would get a different person every day," Prosser said. "But having [LaMonica] here with the funding, she can be here every day for the entire year and hopefully, it will continue after this year. The tone has changed since she's been here. We can get any advice we need from her. Sometimes she thinks of things we don't think of or a solution for a child. She has de-escalated a lot of situations for us."
Many parents believe the resource officer is a huge asset.
"It would give me a piece of mind instead of getting a call from my son and I have to go down there. Put an officer on all these little spots. That's what they need," says Wayne Cornish.
LaMonica will be in the school five days a week for the rest of the school year.
