New Lenox District 122 Approves Updated School Resource Officer Agreement with Village

New Lenox School District 122 Meeting | March 19, 2026

Article Summary: The New Lenox School District 122 Board of Education approved a new Intergovernmental Agreement with the Village of New Lenox, updating the operational guidelines, privacy protocols, and body-worn camera rules for the district’s School Resource Officer.

School Resource Officer Agreement Key Points:

• The District will pay the Village of New Lenox $25,000 for the 2026-2027 school year to deploy one School Resource Officer (SRO).

• The agreement explicitly prohibits the SRO from acting as a school disciplinarian or issuing tickets and citations on school property.

• Strict guidelines govern the use of police body-worn cameras to protect student privacy, heavily restricting their activation during routine community caretaking functions.

The New Lenox School District 122 Board of Education on Thursday, March 19, 2026, unanimously approved an updated Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) with the Village of New Lenox governing the deployment and duties of the district’s School Resource Officer (SRO).

While the district has partnered with the Village of New Lenox for SRO services for several years, Chief School Business Official Robert Groos noted in his memorandum to the Board that the State of Illinois now requires a highly specific format for such agreements. The newly approved IGA complies with these updated state mandates.

Under the financial terms of the agreement, the District will pay the Village $25,000 for the 2026-2027 school year to maintain one SRO on campus for the 180-day academic year. The payment will be split into two $12,500 installments due in February and June of 2027.

A major component of the updated agreement focuses on clarifying the SRO’s role within the educational environment. The document explicitly states that the SRO “shall not serve as a school disciplinarian, as an enforcer of school regulations, or as a school-based mental health provider.” Furthermore, the officer is strictly prohibited from issuing tickets or citations to students while on school property. District administrators will retain full responsibility for managing Student Code of Conduct violations and routine disciplinary matters.

The agreement also establishes strict boundaries regarding the Law Enforcement Officer-Worn Body Camera Act. To protect student privacy, the SRO is barred from activating a body-worn camera during “community caretaking functions.” This includes informal conversations with students, meetings with counselors, and classroom presentations.

Camera activation is restricted to specific law enforcement scenarios, such as when an arrest is imminent, when a contact becomes adversarial, or when investigating a crime. Even then, the camera cannot be activated in areas where individuals have a reasonable expectation of privacy—such as bathrooms or the nurse’s office—unless exigent circumstances exist.

The agreement includes comprehensive reciprocal reporting protocols, requiring school officials to notify police of suspected criminal gang activity, weapons violations, and drug distribution, while police will notify the district of law enforcement records that indicate an imminent threat of physical harm to the school community.

The Board approved the measure in a 6-0 vote. Board member Fay Bowie was absent from the meeting. The agreement will also require the signature of New Lenox Village President Timothy A. Baldermann to be fully executed.