RENO, Nev. (KOLO) – The National Association of School Resource Officers (NASRO) is holding its annual convention this week inside the Peppermill’s Tuscany Ballroom, bringing about 1,600 attendees from across the country.
Lt. Pamela Revels, NASRO’s board president, said the goal of the week-long event is straightforward: “To come together and learn how better we can serve, protect, and educate our young people.”
Workshops and presentations focus on school safety tactics, lessons learned, and ways SROs can better support students and staff. Tim Doll, NASRO’s Region 10 director with the Billings Police Department, said conferences like this can be information-heavy—but the key is leaving with a few takeaways that can be put into practice.
“Find one or two major things,” Doll said. “Find 20% of everything you see and try and take that home with you.”
Speakers also addressed how school safety strategies have evolved since the Columbine High School shooting in 1999. NASRO Executive Director Mo Canady said he was an SRO the day of the Columbine massacre and believes it changed the law enforcement response to active shooter situations.
“Historically, there’s an active shooter in a school building. People are typically going to die until we end it, until we intervene, or the shooter commits suicide,” Canady said.
The convention also includes a large expo component—about 300 exhibitors taking up much of the ballroom—highlighting the growing industry around school safety products and services.
Doll said the cost of attending is worth it if it results in even one life saved: “If this conference, whatever it ends up costing, if it saves one life, it’s 100% worth it.”
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