HANCOCK — Over the past year, the Hancock Police Department has increased its presence in Hancock Public Schools and is making an effort to be more accessible to students and teachers.

Last year, the school provided office space in the Hancock Middle School to the Police Department. This in-school office gives police officers a place to get to know students, while acting as a security post for the middle and high school buildings.

“We try and have an officer in the school more frequently,” said Lt. David Outinen. “The office is a place to work out of for anything that we’ve got to do at the school, like if we’ve got to interview somebody. Or students can simply stop in and see us as well.”

The goal of the Police Department’s increased school presence is two-fold:

“Just spending time up there is No. 1. We’d like students to know our officers so that they are more comfortable and if they do have something they want to discuss with an officer, they can,” Outinen said, “and No. 2, we’ll be there more quickly should an event happen.”

“In the future, we want to be more accessible — having us available and having either a tip line or tip box in case a student received or overheard something, or if there is something that we should be aware of,” he said.

Although officers have been working out of this office for over a year, their in-school presence has received increased public attention in recent weeks, following the school shooting in Oxford, Michigan.

Shortly after the Oxford shooting, the Houghton County Sheriff’s Office reported that it was aware of potential threats to Copper Country Schools. While these online threats were unsubstantiated, local law enforcement took them seriously and worked closely with area schools to address concerns.

Outinen said that Hancock Schools have not received any threats, and that the presence of officers in the school is not a response to threats or safety concerns. However, their presence could help to deter or prevent a future incident, and will ensure that officers are nearby in case of emergency.

“The threats obviously brought everything more into light since the Oxford school shooting and the way things have transpired from there. We try to make more of a point to be there during school hours and during school events,” he said. “But I wouldn’t say that we really did a big increase, or that we’re doing anything more or less than we normally would do.”

Outinen also explained that while officers do visit the school, they are not there at all times.

“When we do have an officer working out of there, they don’t always just stay there. They may go handle another incident or patrol another area. They’re not going to be there the whole school day. They’ll come and go, but we’ll try and make it a point for them to be there more often than not,” he said.

Establishing this in-school office required a shared effort between the Hancock Police Department and the school. As officers continue the initiative, they will maintain close collaboration with school officials.