Mike Wickman is Cal High’s new Student Resource Officer (SRO).
Wickman is a policeman with 11 years of experience. He has been working with the San Ramon Police Department for the past seven years.
Since taking the SRO position at the beginning of the semester, Wickman rotates between Cal High, Iron Horse Middle School and Pine Valley Middle School to make sure students stay safe.
An SRO doesn’t differ much from a regular police officer. The only difference is that instead of patrolling around the city and responding to calls for service, an SRO responds to calls within the school district and is not always actively policing.
Wickman said he became an SRO for two main reasons. First, he likes helping people and enjoys creating life changing moments. Second, Wickman wants to become a police sergeant, and an SRO is one of the steps on the way to becoming one.
“Ultimately, the goal is to become a police sergeant, which is a person in charge of patrol shifts,” Wickman said. “[It] is a fun job to have because you’re leading a team of people.”
Being an SRO has many upsides and downsides. Wickman said helping families and getting thankful messages is always very rewarding.
But there is always a risk of uncooperative students who don’tt want to cooperate.
“Anytime there is someone wanting to cause harm or violence towards [officers] makes this job very tough,” Wickman. “I have been shot at before and it’s not fun.”
Wickman’s primary job as an SRO is enforcing good student behavior, even for students who may be reluctant to follow the rules.
Cal office manager Silvia Paniagua-Loney thinks Wickman handles disciplinary situations well. In the main parking lot, Wickman has helped many times with accidents and controlled the flow of cars. Additionally, he has helped with maintaining order around campus.
“I think everyone feels really safe with him around,” Paniagua-Loney said. “He’s definitely trying to make his presence known on campus and trying to get to know people.”
Freshman Aidan Lorenzana believes Wickman adds more pressure to follow school rules, since getting in trouble with a police officer isn’t very fun.
“With an armed police officer the school just feels way more secure,” Lorenzana said.
Wickman also helps out with the department’s police explorers, which is a two-week program for high school-aged students that shows how officers do their jobs.
The program covers many different elements of the job, and even takes students to the firing range. Students also get to participate in competitions and patrol work.
“We get to talk about tactics, firearms, how we train, and they get to learn about that,” Wickman said.
Senior Sarah Xu’s favorite activity that is part of the program was using department weapons, including pistols, rifles and shotguns, at the firing range. She also learned how to fight and got to ride with police officers.
Participating in the program has opened her eyes about a career in law enforcement and helped her make friends with other explorers.
“Getting to meet many of the officers is my favorite part of the program because I’m comfortable saying hi to them when I’m outside.” Xu said.
As part of his experience as a police officer, Wickman is also a member of the Central County SWAT team and has the role of a hidden sniper. Wickman trained with a defensive tactics instructor and was a detective for more than three years.
Principal Demetrius Ball said a SRO should show himself as an actual “resource and mentor” for students. To Ball, Wickman has been very engaged with learning about the Cal community and supporting students.
“Him being visible rather than just being present, and him supporting us as another adult on campus wanting to support kids is huge,” Ball said.
