Kopperl ISD, the smallest school district in Bosque County, took a big step to ensure the safety of their students and staff by incorporating a newly formed Kopperl ISD Police Department.
License Texas Peace Officer Danny Ragsdale said he was contacted by Kopperl ISD Superintendent Katrina Adcock to present a few safety plans for the district . Ragsdale said he presented the Guardian and School Marshall programs in addition to a plan to form their own police department during Kopperl ISD’s last school board meeting.
Superintendent Adcok said “over the past few years teachers have had more and more requirements imposed on them when their jobs were already hard enough. By having our own police department our teachers are able to focus on what they were trained to do, teach.”
Because Kopperl ISD is extremely rural the response time for local law enforcement has always been a concerning topic, and by having a campus police department KISD will be able to better meet that need. The decision by the Board of Directors to create Kopperl ISD Police Department was made to provide the safest environment possible for the students and staff of Kopperl ISD, Adcock said.
“I didn’t go into that meeting looking for a job, but to give them the tools they needed to make decisions,” Ragsdale explained. Before the meeting was over Ragsdale said he didn’t expect them to decide to form their own police department and present him with a contract and job offer.
KISD Police Department wasn’t expected to be formed for four to six months from the time of the board meeting, but Ragsdale became the first person to structure an Independent School District Police Department and become fully approved and certified by Texas Commission on Law Enforcement “TCOLE” within 45 days. Ragsdale officially swore his oath as Kopperl ISD Police Chief the morning of Wednesday, September 29.
Kopperl ISD PD is its own agency unlike most school resource officers who are licensed by TCOLE but commissioned by an outside local law enforcement agency. Ragsdale described Kopperl ISD PD as a municipal police department housed within the school building with the same authority as any sworn peace officer who would come into the school to handle situations.
Ragsdale is just over 11 years in law enforcement and holds his Advanced Peace Officer license. He is currently a TCOLE instructor, Field Training Officer, and K-9 Handler among various other TCOLE certifications. K-9 “Dante,” who has been Ragsdale’s partner for many years, will periodically be joining Ragsdale in his duties to protect and serve Kopperl ISD.
Ragsdale will be required by TCOLE to maintain his continuing education hours as any other Texas Peace Officer, and he will be doing additional training at The Texas School Safety Center (TxSSC), which is an official university-level research center through Texas State University. School-Based Law Enforcement or SBLE are classes created specifically to provide officers with as much training as possible to maintain the highest level of safety for School Resource Officers to utilize within their school districts.
When asked why he decided to shift his law enforcement career from street patrol into public education, Ragsdale said, “with all the events happening in schools today, schools and police departments are having a hard time finding people who are dedicated to this type of law enforcement. I’ve always liked working with kids throughout my entire career, and this was an opportunity to bring everything together.”
In addition to a near instant response time, KISD Police Department’s presence on campus will provide students with their own law enforcement escorts to extracurricular events both in and out of the county.
If you have questions or need help in any way, Chief Ragsdale is always happily ready to assist in any way within his power. He can be reached at (254) 889-3502 or email at [email protected]. Be sure to follow Chief Ragsdale’s recently formed Kopperl ISD Police Department Facebook page
