After six years, school resource officer John Midiros will no longer be the SRO starting next year.

Midiros is being replaced due to a new policy being initiated by superintendent Dr. Doug Sumner that says an SRO should not stay at a school for more than five years. Midiros’ replacement will be determined by the end of this week. That officer’s training will begin on Monday, May 14.

Midiros says that he would rather be able to remain at the school.

“I want to come back,” Midiros said. “I very much enjoy what I do. I’m very disappointed and hurt that I won’t be back next year. I’m trying to tell them [the School Board] that it takes one or two years before the students start trusting you and the staff starts trusting you.”

A petition was presented at the School Board meeting on Monday, May 7 asking that Midiros be allowed to remain, although it did not succeed. Started by math teacher Laurie Deuschle and social studies teachers Jeff Wieland and Angie DalBello, it was signed by teachers, students and parents.

“I appreciate all that he does here,” Deuschle said. “I appreciate that he’s discreet and uses discretion with students. I appreciate his professionalism, thoroughness and I don’t want to see him leave. It’ll take awhile for people to get used to [the new SRO].”

Dalbello says that she wanted Midiros to know that Midiros was backed by the staff.

“We wanted to let Officer Midiros know that as a faculty we supported him,” Dalbello said.

Director of administrative services and community relations Alvie Cater said that the standard amount of time an SRO has served has been five years and that the reason the district requested a new one from the Shawnee Police Department was that Midiros had served six years.

“That has been the practice of the school district,” Cater said.

A statement released by the district said that Midiros’ work is appreciated but that the replacement is necessary to follow the traditional amount of time.

“We applaud Officer John Midiros’s six years of service to Mill Valley High School and appreciate his dedication to our Shawnee school community,” the statement said. “However, in cooperation with the Shawnee Police Department, USD 232 supports a reasonable term of service for SRO placements and we believe the timing of this transition aligns with those standards.”

However, the “reasonable term of service” has not previously been followed as a five-year limit. Not only has Midiros served six years, but previous SRO Corey Wilburn served from 2000 to 2006, until he was replaced by Midiros.