AKRON, Ohio — The first day of school in Akron Public Schools is less than two weeks away, and as of now, there will not be any officers in the schools.
The city and the Akron Board of Education are at odds over a contract for school resource officers.
The dispute is about whether district leaders should have the authority to remove officers from schools if issues arise with them.
At a school board meeting Monday, Mayor Shammas Malik urged the board to approve a contract, but the board went into executive session for hours and came back without a deal.
Akron Police Union President Brian Lacey said he's worried about safety without SROs.
"There's no reason that an officer should not be in the building. It's a safety concern for the students. It's a safety concern for the staff. This has been a great program that we've had in place," Lacey said.
Lacey said if a deal is reached, 14 officers would return to high schools and middle schools in Akron.
