When school

opens Aug. 12, all of Coweta County's middle schools will

be staffed with police officers.

The Coweta

County Board of Commissioners have approved placing

resource officers at the county's three middle schools.

The

estimated $150,000 cost will be shared by the commission

and the Coweta County Board of Education. The school

system is slated to purchase the vehicles for the

officers, while the county will pick up the tab for the

officers' salaries.

Sheriff

Mike Yeager estimated the cost of funding the three new

officers at just over $150,000 a year, including

salaries, benefits and equipment, along with a vehicle

for each officer.

Adding

three new officers would greatly improve the security at

the schools, the sheriff added.

"This

year we had a problem at East Coweta Middle School and

the resource officer was at Madras Middle. That's a long

way to drive," he said.

The

sheriff's department was able to send an officer to East

Coweta Middle, but Yeager said the real solution is

having an officer at each school.

The county

currently shares the personnel costs of the one middle

school resource officer with the Coweta County Board of

Education.

The

commissioners hailed the program as one that is truly

necessary.

"Middle

school is probably where a child is the most

impressionable," said Commissioner Robert Wood.

Commissioner

Vernon "Mutt" Hunter said he had suggested

funding the middle school resource officers a few years

ago, but the proposal was dropped.

Hunter

expressed satisfaction with the contract between the

commission and the Board of Education and said it was

time to add the officers to ensure the safety of the

county's children.

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