Redefining School Safety and Policing: A Transformative Four-Pillar Model

Redefining School Safety and Policing identifies and works to eliminate systemic issues in school policing that negatively impact students of color, LGBTQIA+ students, and other marginalized populations.

Focusing on the fundamental goal of creating safe learning environments, Yarbrough lays out the unintended consequences of involving police in the administrative disciplinary process, as agents of school administrators and enforcers of zero-tolerance policies. Behavioral health support is important to students going through social, emotional, and mental health crises. True equity work brings everyone to a safe space in the middle, encouraging open discussion and courageous dialogue and aiming to create positive change. Yarbrough argues that behavioral health and racial equity are vital to transforming school policing and providing beneficial alternative solutions to school policing that do not lead students to the juvenile or criminal justice system.

This book is suitable for colleges and universities, K-12 school administrators, teachers, police and school resource officers, counselors, social workers, and community activists.

Jeffrey D. Yarbrough is a public servant with over 28 years of law enforcement experience. He currently serves as Chief of Police for the City of Hutto, Texas. Prior to joining Hutto Police Department, he created and served as the inaugural Police Chief for the Round Rock Independent School District Police Department in Round Rock, Texas, where he was responsible for the safety of over 51,000 students, 7,000 staff members, and visitors to over 70 campuses and facilities. Jeffrey oversaw every level of safety, security, and law enforcement services for the district.

Jeffrey previously served as the inaugural Chief of Police for the Bastrop Independent School District. He also served as a sergeant in the Travis County District Attorney’s Office in the Public Integrity Unit. Jeffrey was the former Chief of Police and Assistant City Manager for the City of Tulia, Texas. He served as Senior Investigator for the State Bar of Texas and Sergeant in the Criminal Prosecution Division of the Texas Attorney General’s Office where he investigated numerous murder and capital murder cases.

For his work, Jeffrey received the 2022 State of Texas Law Enforcement Achievement Award for Professional Achievement through the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement at the Texas State Capitol House of Representatives. In addition, he received a proclamation from the Texas Senate in recognition of his professional achievements in school safety.

Jeffrey received the 2022 Texas A&M University Outstanding Alumni-Early Career Award from the School of Education and Human Development. The award was received for the Four Pillars of School Safety and Policing model along with the Community S.A.F.E. Project. The early career award is granted once a year to those who have made outstanding contributions within their chosen fields across their community, state, and the nation through professional service, public service, and/or civic activities in less than 10 years of receiving their degree. Less than 1% of Texas A&M graduates receive the award. Jeffrey is the first police officer and police chief to be bestowed this prestigious honor.

Chief Yarbrough possesses a master’s degree in Educational Human Resource Development from Texas A&M University at College Station. He is a graduate of the University of Texas at Brownsville where he received a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice.