LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) is expanding its staff of student resource officers. Recently, the district graduated its first officer from the state police academy in Richmond. He also happens to be a JCPS graduate.
“Some of them still kind of see me as their student, but the fact that they’re still here and they’re still serving, I just, I’m really excited that I get a chance to serve along with them,” JCPS Student Safety Officer Kevin Hayes-Taylor said as he walked the halls of Western High School. The south end campus is also his former high school.
Hayes-Taylor recently joined the force after fifteen years in the Kentucky National Guard. He says he always wanted to work in law enforcement, especially in schools. Hayes-Taylor credits the mentors he had as a student for this.
“I had a dad in my house, not like some of my peers, but my dad wasn’t at school,” Hayes-Taylor explained. “So what I got, when I had all these mentors was somebody reinforcing exactly what my dad was saying, but they were reinforcing it while I was away and that was their school. So that really, really helped me.”
Now Hayes-Taylor hopes to be the same kind of mentor in his new role. Unlike smaller districts, officers in JCPS are not assigned to a sole school. Instead, they patrol a handful of campuses. They enter the schools only when needed once situations can no longer be handled administratively.
“We respond, but we have we understand the school policies,” Hayes-Taylor said. “We understand the school mission. We have access. We have a relationship built with most of the school staff and teachers’ staff and even with the students.”
Hayes-Taylor, who is also a father, hopes to build meaningful relationships with students, especially with kids who may not have the best relationship with law enforcement.
“I do the best I can to not just be a good example for them, but also to be the person that’s going to treat them with dignity and kindness, even in their worst situations, even when they’ve done something and are now in a position where I’m there and I have to hold them accountable for the mistakes that they made. I still have a chance to treat them with a certain level of dignity, kindness, respect,” Hayes-Taylor said.
That commitment he says goes a long way, “Instead of being on the sideline and kind of point fingers and kind of being like ESPN and circling and talk about what they could have done better. I decided I wanted to be a part of what’s going to be better.”
He adds he wants every student to know — he’ll be there to serve them every day he puts on his new uniform.
Currently, JCPS has 14 school resource officers, which it calls student safety officers. The district reports it has six recruits who still need to go through the academy. JCPS hopes to have 30 SROs.
Those interested in applying can do so online.
Correction: In the subtext of a previous version of this story, Kevin Hayes-Taylor was called Ryan Hayes-Taylor. The error has been corrected. (Nov. 10, 2023)