HILLSDALE—The Borough Council unanimously approved the hire of a new school resource officer (SRO) for Pascack Valley Regional High School on Oct. 8, though concerns were raised about the distribution of costs across the district’s four towns.
The new SRO, whose position will be partially funded by the Pascack Valley Regional High School District, is set to serve both Hillsdale and River Vale students. However, Hillsdale Councilman John Ruocco voiced concerns that the borough would be “subsidizing” other towns, as the district is contributing $40,000 of the officer’s $74,000 annual salary.
Ruocco argued that the district’s contribution should be more evenly split among Hillsdale, River Vale, Woodcliff Lake, and Montvale. “Shame on the Board of Ed for taking the position they have for the last 10 years,” he said.
District superintendent Sarah Bilotti said in a statement, “We are grateful to both Hillsdale PD and Montvale PD for assisting us and providing us with our amazing SLEO officers who support our students at both schools.” She also confirmed that the district would increase its contribution to $54,000 in the 2025–2026 budget.
Hillsdale councilmember Janetta Trochimiuk suggested that future negotiations should result in an equal division of costs between all four towns. The SRO will serve the schools from Sept. 1 to June 30, with the officer returning to Hillsdale’s police department during July and August.