Steve Linton, SRO at Desert Hills High

The following is a letter from Rusty Taylor, Principal at Desert Hills High School.

“Officer Linton has been an excellent SRO at our high school for several years now. When he first came on, he made it his job to get to know students, not just by name, but also by what they do, what their interests are, who they hang around with, and issues they might have. All of this was done so that he could be a better resource for them. Officer Linton is professional, friendly, and good-natured. The kids love working with him.

As Officer Linton became more and more knowledgeable of the students, he recognized an opportunity. He approached me with the idea of being able to teach an Introduction to Law Enforcement class. After working through the details, we got the class going. Students who have taken it have loved working with Officer Linton and getting to know a totally different side of what a police office does.

At Desert Hills High School, each member of the office staff and administration is responsible for 1 or 2 “mentor” students … students who are at-risk due to a number of factors. As mentors to these students, we check in with them once or twice a week, help them navigate school, make sure work gets turned in and completed, and advocate for the students when there isn’t someone else to do it for them. Officer Linton has been an active part of our program and over the course of the last 3 years has been influential in helping his students reach the goal of graduation.”