DENISON, Texas (KTEN) — The Denison Independent School District Board of Trustees has approved a plan to create a district police department.

Security and safety staffers said they started planning in March 2022, and it was officially approved at last month's board meeting.

"We had to have a [Texas Commission on Law Enforcement]-certified peace officer at each of our campuses," said Michael DeHaven, the district's security director. "So we started planning to try to get ahead of that system and started looking at what our infrastructure was gonna look like and we arrived at this goal."

DISD will work with the TCLE and with Denison police over the next few months.

"The DPD officers will go back to Denison as police officers, the SROs that we currently have in our school system will be badged per TCOLE regulations. If they qualify for that position, they will be badged as ISD police officers," DeHaven explaied. "Our SROs are absolutely part of the student community; they're part of the administrative community; they're involved in all the kids' sports; they go to all the games; they're giving them high-fives in the hallways; the little bitties are coming up and hugging legs."

Having officers specifically for the school district will be an adjustment for the students and staff, which is why the district is looking for as much continuity as possible.

The final step will be getting their department's charter number.

Sherman ISD established its own police force in January of 2022; Van Alstyne ISD followed with its own department later that year.