Jim Marks Named Island School Resource Officer
By Ryan Schlehuber

Jim "Old School" Marks, a Mackinac Island police officer, enjoys lunch with eighth-graders Andrew Chambers (left) and Thomas Rilenge Wednesday, January 31. Mr. Marks is the new school resource officer, a liaison between police and the school. He will teach students about decision making in life and build a foundation to create a better relationship between police and youth. (Photograph courtesy of Susan Bennett)

Students at Northville Schools knew Jim Marks as "Old School," some even called him "Gramps." To him, that meant they knew him and trusted him, even when he was in his police uniform, and it is that rapport he hopes to create with students on Mackinac Island as the school's new school resource officer (SRO).

Having been hired full-time on the Mackinac Island Police Department, after working parttime last summer, Mr. Marks, 56, originally from Northville, will teach safety classes, eat lunch with students, and build a rapport with them so they can come to him, or any police officer, for help.

"I want to help them make good, sound decisions in their lives," he said to the board. "Working with kids is one of the biggest thrills. Being able to work as a police officer and be a school liaison is the best of both worlds for me."

The school board agreed to the program at its regular meeting Thursday, January 25, and Mr. Marks began visiting the school Wednesday, January 31.

"The school will benefit from this through various programs that come along with the school resource officer program," said Superintendent Roger Schrock. Benefits, he said, include Drug Awareness Resistance Education (DARE), bicycle safety, decision-making, and the continuance of the school's Community Emergency Response Team, or CERT.

He said he will seek grants to help fund such programs.

For now, Mr. Marks visits every school day for several hours to familiarize himself with each of the 60 students in the K-12 school district.

"I want to show that police officers don't just arrest people and give out citations," Mr. Marks said to the school board. "I want to show them that we also are here to help whenever we can. We have to allow kids to know me as a person and not just a police officer."

He believes students in the fourth, fifth, and sixth grades are the most impressionable and need the most attention.

"Their habits usually haven't formed yet and they are at a good age to begin setting good standards for them," Dr. Schrock added.

The SRO program, said school board member Jason St. Onge, will not be used to seek out students violating school or city regulations.

"It is not the program's intent to look for parties on Friday nights or search students' lockers," said Mr. St. Onge, who will chair a committee that will oversee the program. Committee members will include parents and students.

During his 35 years in law enforcement, Mr. Marks was the DARE officer for schools in Northville and Roscommon. He has also coordinated safety programs such as Stranger Danger, teaching children to be cautious when speaking to strangers, a program he hopes to establish here.

Mr. Marks is retired from the Roscommon Sheriff's Department and began working parttime as a police officer here last summer. When Officer Jim Beam resigned from the police department and moved away in December, a full-time position on the department became available.

Mr. Marks' wife, Nancy, who is still working in Roscommon, will move to the Island soon, he said.