EASTHAMPTON — After a rocky year, Easthampton High School is starting fresh with a revised discipline policy focused on restorative practices, new initiatives to address bias and a new school resource officer.
Officer Rick Rogalski was appointed to the position last month. The superintendent and police chief recently settled on a new memorandum of understanding that focuses on a commitment to restorative justice and students’ civil rights.
Another goal for the program is to detect patterns of delinquency and prevent them from developing among students.
Officer Alan Schadel held the resource officer’s post for 12 years and went on medical leave in January due to an on-duty injury. Schadel was out for a number of months and Rogalski filled in as the school liaison officer. Police Chief Robert Alberti posted the open position and Rogalski was the only officer on the department who applied.
“He certainly is the best fit,” Alberti said.
He added that the department also restructured the position so that the school resource officer reports to the detective bureau rather than the shift supervisor to increase continuity.
Rogalski, 49, has served on the Easthampton Police Department for 23 years. He’s also spent 15 years coaching football at Easthampton High School. He grew up in Northampton and his father was a lieutenant at the Northampton Police Department.
“He always tried to talk me out of becoming a police officer,” Rogalski said. But that didn’t stop him.
Rogalski started his career in 1990 as a corrections officer at the Hampshire County Jail and House of Correction. He started at the Easthampton Police Department in 1994 as a part-time officer.
He specializes in accident reconstruction at the department, where he investigates major, and sometimes fatal, car crashes. He’ll continue to work on patrol in addition to his role as school resource officer.
As a school resource officer, Rogalski said, he can make a direct and positive impact on students.
He recently taught a lesson on drugs and alcohol at White Brook Middle School. Students wore drunk goggles and tried to tie their shoes. He also works with the guidance counselor on home visits to students who have not been attending school to talk about next steps in education.
When it comes to school discipline, Rogalski is involved if there is a criminal matter, such as if a student makes a threat.
Rogalski said if there is a crime committed on school grounds, he contacts the Northwestern district attorney’s office and the student will go through a diversion program rather than the criminal justice system.
Through training, Rogalski said, he has learned that the teenage brain is different from an adults, and that juveniles should not go through the same criminal and court process as adults.
The School Resource Program will be assessed annually at the end of each school year.
Caitlin Ashworth can be reached at cashworth@gazettenet.com.