Wyoming — It’s lunchtime in the Wyoming High School cafeteria and school safety officers Monte Parks, Marion Parks and Menalito McGee are in the middle of the action.
As students dine and mingle, the SSOs chat with students about school, sports and life, laughing, hugging, fist-bumping and patting them on the back.
The trio could easily be mistaken for students themselves, both in terms of appearance and their easy banter with youth; it wasn’t too long ago that they were.
The Parks brothers, two in a set of triplets, and McGee are 2020 graduates who are still recognized district-wide as star basketball players. They were starting players on a team whose dazzling run-and-gun style and three-point shooting filled the gymnasium game after game during the 2019-20 season.
After winning the Gold Conference, however, their run for state finals was brought to a screeching halt due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
‘I want to steer them in the right direction as much as I can.”
— SSO Monte Parks
‘A special bond’
Dubbed that basketball season as the Pony Express due to their ponytails, the three have kept their hairstyles but taken on the professional demeanor of SSOs. They add extra eyes to the halls of Wyoming High School, ensuring security, de-escalating threats, and making sure all is calm.
But, above all else, they said it’s the relationship-building that makes the biggest difference.
“For me, It’s about trying to make sure kids feel welcome at school so they can be themselves and not be scared to come to school. I want them to be happy to come,” Marion Parks said, noting how he makes a point to give students compliments or to “mess with them” to get a smile. “It’s just about trying to make their day better.”
The students landed in the SSO roles after coaching various sports in the district in the years following their graduation.
Joe Steffes, WPS safety, security and transportation director, was looking to expand his team over the past few years beginning with current SSO supervisor Ron Thomas. The idea was to shift from a model of having retired police officers serve as SSOs and bring in people students saw as more relatable.
Monte Parks was the first to be hired in 2023. He helped recruit his brother and McGee, a graduate of Aquinas College. All three are now pursuing secondary education degrees to become teachers.
“They were all very well respected amongst the community members and families and well known as being good role models,” Steffes said, noting that current students were starstruck fans during their basketball days.
Even the way things ended that year is a lesson in perseverance they can share with the students, he said.
“These guys have a special bond. They grew up their whole lives here. They graduated from here. They probably would have won the state championship.”
‘This is what an SSO is about’
The SSOs are involved in a variety of tasks throughout the day — enforcing school policy to have students put their phones in caddies; ushering them into school safely during morning drop-off and afternoon dismissal; roaming the halls to make sure everyone is in class. They also work to prevent fights and vaping and bring perpetrators to the administration.
“The relationship they are building with these children has been lifelong because these kids have looked up to them for so long,” Steffes said. They are continuing to build those relationships, he added, “and that provides a lot of preventative maintenance for our district.”
‘Every connection matters, no matter how big or small.’
— SSO Menalito McGee
Monte Parks said he wants to help students feel confident in speaking up and to not feel lost in a difficult situation.
“It’s me actually sitting down and getting to know who they are one-on-one, whether that’s me figuring out a plan or me just getting them to open up to a trusted adult,” he said. “I want to steer them in the right direction as much as I can. … It’s constantly creating that bond. …This is what an SSO is about.”
McGee said he works hard to connect with all students — athletes, robotics team members, musicians, anyone who needs it. He sees them as who they are outside of school — someone’s son, daughter, sister, brother — and aims to make sure “everyone feels heard.”
“Every connection matters no matter how big or small,” said McGee. “A compliment can change a person’s whole attitude or just make their day.”
Junior Miles Kolehouse said the SSO program creates a positive presence in the school.
“It is very needed and it has a positive impact on everyone,” Miles said. “They cheer people up and if you are having a bad day, they will lift you up.”
“They make everything more fun to talk about — school and sports,” added sophomore Yurem Rivera. “They are cool dudes to talk to.”
Sometimes, even the SSOs are surprised by the impact they have.
“What shocks me the most is how much the kids actually start to open up to you when you are not expecting it,” said Marion Parks. “Even the quiet ones that you said hello to one time will remember your name for the rest of the year. They will smile when they see you, give high fives.
“That’s really the best part of the job, is having the kids feel safe and letting it be seen that they are known throughout the school.”
Read more from Wyoming:
• New principal: Great leaders grow more great leaders
• Longtime EL instructor named director of multilingual programming
