Arlington Police School Resource Officer Justin Olson was reassigned to patrol after the last school year. The Arlington School District needed another School Resource Officer. That’s when Officer Nathan Bauer soared in to help us at the Arlington High School.

  Arlington Police Officer Nathan Bauer has been with the City of Arlington since June of 2022, Officer Bauer first started his law enforcement career in November of 2015 working for the Seattle Police Department. He said that in 2020 Seattle capitalized on the defund police movement which was accompanied by riots and caused him to want to find a city that was more supportive of their officers.  Officer Bauer decided to move his family to a more supportive city and as he was looking at other police departments, he chose to work in Arlington due to the small town feel and large community support.

  “I’ve always loved working with kids; kids are just a blast.” School Resource Officer (SRO) Bauer said. “You get to connect with the kids who may need that access to the outside world.” 

Students don’t always feel safe in their school, having an SRO here makes them feel a little bit safer. 

  “Having an SRO is a good thing, just having his car out front is a deterrent from some people coming here.” Security guard Mark McDougall said.

Some parents agree having an SRO makes the school safer, and a better place.  “There’s been a lot of mistrust with police officers,” Principal Marilee Herman said. “There’s additional support with the police officers when they are here.” 

Officer Bauer is a great resource if you ever need someone. When asked if he had any advice for high school students

Officer Bauer said, “Just get through it.” To make his job easier, Bauer said “come say hi to me.”