MARLBORO – The Marlboro Police Department is accepting applications for the position of Class III special officer and the individuals hired for the position will be assigned to work at the township’s public schools.
Class III special officers are retired law enforcement officers who are hired by a police department and are authorized to carry a firearm when they are on duty at a school.
Mayor Jonathan Hornik said the move is being made in response to the Feb. 14 incident at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., during which a gunman shot and killed 17 people and injured 14 others.
The decision to hire Class III special officers and place them in Marlboro’s schools came one week after Hornik and Township Councilman Jeff Cantor met with representatives of the police department to discuss school security issues in the wake of the Parkland tragedy.
“I believe that keeping our children and our teachers safe in schools has to be a priority of our local government and that these (special officer) hires and their introduction into the school system will help achieve that goal,” Hornik said.
An individual who applies to work as a Class III special officer must be a retired law enforcement officer younger than 65 who served as a fully trained full-time police officer in any New Jersey municipality or county, or as a member of the New Jersey State Police, and was separated from that prior service in good standing within five years of being hired as a Class III special officer.
Each applicant will be required to pass a background check, a drug test, a medical examination and a psychological examination. A person who works as a Class III special officer must reside in New Jersey. The position is expected to pay $25 per hour, according to municipal officials.
For additional information about the position, contact Marlboro Police Capt. Fred Reck at freck@marlboropd.org or 732-536-0100, ext. 1466.
