GCCISD Security Officer Sills and Police Campus Sergeant Gilliam pose with a SCTHS Culinary Arts student during the first Coffee with Cops event.
By: Kristyn Hunt Cathey, APR – Director of Communications
According to a study on the justice.gov website entitled, Importance of Police-Community Relationships, “Strong relationships of mutual trust between police agencies and the communities they serve are critical to maintain public safety and public policing.”
It is no secret that safety-as it relates to school districts-is at the forefront of all our minds. The Goose Creek CISD Police Department continues to take the necessary steps to increase its presence on our 32 campuses and in the Baytown and Highlands communities. They participate in several district and community events, such as Back to School fairs, Trunk or Treat, homecoming parades, are active in the Education Foundation and more.
The department’s latest endeavor is Coffee with Cops. Established in spring 2023, the event brought together community members to meet and have a healthy dialogue with officers from the GCCISD Police Department. This was also an opportunity for the district to showcase one of their most popular CTE programs: Culinary Arts. Kylie Sobcazak, Culinary Arts teacher at Stuart Career Technical High School, and her students made fresh ground coffee and breakfast treats from scratch for the guests in the school’s coffee shop.
Davis Smith, GCCISD Chief of Police, thanked the guests for their attendance. “It is our duty as officers in this district to ensure we are present with our families,” he said. “We want you to know how important the safety and security of our students and staff are to us and we hope to do more of these in the future.” Dr. Randal O’Brien, Superintendent of Schools, echoed his thoughts. “I want to personally thank Chief and his officers for always going above and beyond for our community,” he said. “This is a great opportunity for our families to get to know our officers in a different environment and I know that it will make a major difference moving forward.”
The GCCISD Police Department plans to host quarterly Coffee with Cops meetings during the 2023-2024 school year, beginning on August 29th. All meetings will be held from 9-10 a.m. at Stuart Career Technical High School and are free and open to the public.