HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT)- School safety remains at the top of the minds of parents of school-age children. The News 19 Investigative team has reached out to the three main school districts in Huntsville and Madison for data about this year’s school resource officers.

Madison County Schools has 18 SROs in its district for the 2022-2023 school year. Madison County Schools (MCS) spokesperson Carter Watkins tells News 19 that each SRO works a full 40 hours a week.

However, according to the district’s website, there are a total of 29 schools. Watkins says the district is currently in talks with the sheriff’s office to acquire two additional SROs this school year.

The officers in MCS are paid through a joint agreement between the district and the Madison County Sheriff’s Office.

Huntsville City Schools (HCS) says it has 25 school resource officers across its district for the 2022-2023 school year. There are a total of 43 schools, some sharing an address, in the HCS system.

HCS spokesperson Craig Williams did not disclose whether the SROs in the Huntsville system are full-time employees. He also says the district has 70 campus security officers. However, it’s unclear what being a campus security officer entails.

The SROs in Huntsville City Schools are paid through an agreement between the district and the Huntsville Police Department.

Based on the number of SROs compared to the total number of school buildings, it seems like the officers would have to split their time between different schools.

Madison County and Huntsville City Schools say due to security concerns, they won’t lay out specifically how it all works.

Madison City Schools has not responded to our request.