Renegotiations with JWP on SRO officer

During the Janesville City Council meeting on June 9, the council revisited the topic of the School Resource Officer (SRO) Sheila Jewison and approved her change of schedule so she will be at Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton (JWP) only two days a week. However, city administrator Clinton Rogers relayed that the structure of the two days may vary, depending on the school’s and city’s needs.

 

“The SRO program will stay the same throughout this calendar, basically through Christmas break,” Rogers said. “And then, beginning in January, JWP will pay $20,000 a year for the SRO program.”

 

Discussion during the meeting revealed the SRO work time could be very flexible, for example four half days rather than two full days. When Jewison is not at the school, she will perform tasks typical for city police personnel, including parking enforcement and responding to calls. 

 

Mayor Andrew Arnoldt extended thanks to Rogers and school superintendent Jeremy Erler for time spent negotiating; he expressed happiness that they found a solution acceptable to both the city and the school.

 

In other business, the council added a one-page policy to the employee handbook regarding pregnancy and post-natal leave, as recommended by the personnel committee.

 

The council also tabled a discussion about whether or not the city should continue to provide availability and work within the budget for the cable access channels, given that the city equipment has grown obsolete. The only residents who use it, Rogers said, are Mediacom customers.  “It's next to impossible to find a person that can come and help the city with it,” Rogers added.

 

Council member Ivan Maas suggested tabling the discussion until after some upcoming meetings with businesses which have expertise in the field. He mentioned that area churches sometimes broadcast their services using the access. Luitjens observed a growing number of those broadcasts are being moved to YouTube or individual websites.

 

“We don't have to decide tonight,” Rogers said. “The equipment itself used to be VCR tapes, now it's DVDs.”

 

Along with approving and renewing the liquor licenses of existing businesses, the council approved a new license for the Bar Next Door, which will be operated by Kendra and Mark Schultz.

 

Rogers warned the council the July 14 meeting is likely to run long because of a scheduled audit report.