As the summer break comes to a close, preparations for the upcoming 2019-2020 school year are in full swing across the district and in the HISD Police Department.  

The department is hosting a slate of professional development training courses in the weeks leading up to the first day of school.  

“Training is always important because it allows for us to prepare for the upcoming school year,” HISD Police Sgt. Quinten Flannel said. “It helps us to keep up with the challenges and demands of the district. We want our officers to be trained and to know how to handle it.”  

According to Flannel, the courses administered this summer are mandated by the Texas Commission of Law Enforcement Excellence and Standards. The sessions cover several areas, from handling active shooter situations to administering CPR in emergency situations.  

Flannel said some courses prepare the officers for serving not only parents but their families. For example, the weeklong Crisis Intervention course deals with handling students and their parents in a crisis. 

For the officers attending the training courses, the information is invaluable to their work in the field. 

“The reason why these trainings are so useful and crucial to the police department is that they equip us with the tools we need every year,” Community Outreach Officer Vanessa Losey said. “We’re constantly evolving and being updated, whether it involves new laws or new policies and procedures.”