SRO’s three-pronged job
The job of Oro Valley’s “School Resource Officers (SRO)” is indeed challenging. Police officers are there to protect the children. They guide and counsel students as needed. They also teach in the classroom. What happens when there are few students in the classroom because of the pandemic?
Most Oro Valley SRO’s returned to patrol duty, bolstering street presence during the early days of the pandemic. SRO Greg Chmara stayed on duty for the students in our community. Chmara is the SRO at Painted Sky Elementary School. He also serves at three other schools. He became an SRO after the pandemic started, after completing three years as an Oro Valley patrol officer.
Chmara faced the challenge of engaging kids virtually over the past year.
The concept: “Hanging with Officer Greg”
Chmara created a video channel exclusively for the school’s students. On it, he broadcasts a video series called: “Hanging with Officer Greg”. We’ve included the “trailer” for that series in the panel below.
A tip from a colleague started it all
“As the newest SRO, I was tasked to cover all of the schools in the area. I was going to all the schools trying to figure out what the students needed. I was having a hard time trying to figure out how to do this. SRO Vivian Lopez mentioned that, at one time, she had read a book to her students and then put it on youtube so her students could access it. A light bulb went off in my head. What a great way. I know how youth today really connect online. A lot of them will sit there watching youtube and TikTok videos for hours and hours. What better way to reach out to those youths than through a media they love to use to get across positive messages.”So, he created what is now a 21-episode (and growing) series.
Teachers in control
Creator…Writer..Producer…Director…Webmaster
Greg does every phase of production, from conceiving the topic to posting the videos such that student privacy is maintained. He usually has one or two ready to go a week before publishing date. The videos are from 3-12 minutes.
“Some of the longest are the most favorite videos.”
The topic of one of the longest videos is: “Reading Dog Body Language”. It has had more viewers than most. We understand why after watching it. Greg developed it by involving Pima Animal Control. The video is entertaining. The video shows different dog behaviors. The video tells you how to interpret the behavior (Did you know that a wagging tail does not always mean the dog is friendly?) The video provides advice on what to do. We learned a lot!! The video should be posted on the town’s website!
Greg releases the video links weekly through the teachers. They decide how and when to integrate it with their curriculum. “It allows them to have another tool to teach their students.”
Topics that matter
Some of the topics in the series are equally informative. They include:
•. What happens at a traffic stop
•. When should you call 911
•. “Tattling v Telling”
• Backpack Safety
This week he released one on “self esteem.” “Something I’m really excited for. Its really affected our youth…. a lot of kids a facing difficult times [because of the isolation caused by the pandemic]. My hope is for them to see the good things and to change their thought process to positive.”
Above and beyond
SRO Greg Chmara has gone “above and beyond” in protecting and lovingly guiding the youngest in our community. We are indeed fortunate that he is an integral member of our public safety force.
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Click this link to learn more about Office Greg.
