For the kids, he’s a friendly face, high fives and fist bumps.

He’s much more for teachers, administrators and parents.

As Kingfisher Public Schools’ first resource offi cer, Justin Conner hasn’t wasted any time getting to know the students and providing assurance the facilities are secure. Working as an officer with the Kingfisher Police Department for the past eight years and with the Kingfisher County Sheriff’s office for six years before that, Conner is an experienced member of law enforcement.

As he’s getting comfortable in his new role, Conner said he’s grateful to be able to offer his assistance and help make sure everyone is safe.

“I enjoy it,” he said. “I love kids and with everything going on around the world nowadays…this was huge for me.”

Conner said he’ll go to each school, spend some time with the children, check the doors and other security measures and just watch over everybody, making sure they’re safe.

KPS Superintendent David Glover said Conner approached him about the possibility of hiring a resource officer for the district and he thought it was a great idea.

“It’s a different world we’re living in,” Glover said. “In everything we do as administrators and teachers, we want to protect the children and this will provide another level of security for students as well as our teachers.”

With no set schedule, Conner will rotate throughout all the buildings from pre-kindergarten to high school checking security measures and interacting with staff and students, Glover said.

On order for the district are two-way radios which will provide more efficient communication between the resource officer and the principals within each building as well as the superintendent, Glover said.

Just two weeks into the position, Conner has already made his presence visible at morning arrivals and afternoon departures providing security as well as exchanging high fives and fist bumps with the children.

“The kids seem to enjoy seeing me there,” Conner said.

He’s even received an “Everybody’s been very welcoming and many of the teachers have thanked me for being here,” he said.

At Gilmour, principal Makylah Tollefson said having Conner present is very reassuring for her as well as the teachers.

“We are so thrilled,” she said. “It’s nice to know that he’s here if we need him.”

He’s great with the kids, greeting them in the halls and taking time to read books to them in the classroom, Tollefson said.

“I think the kids need to see that police officers are here to help us and they’re loving that he’s here as well,” she said.

In addition, Glover said the district has hired two off-duty officers to patrol home football games, adding increased security there also.

Conner and his wife, Michelle, have two children, Justin (7) in first grade and Tiffany (13) in seventh grade as well as a one-month-old son, Dakota, who passed away in 2020.

Michelle also works for the district as a secretary at Kingfisher Junior High School.

While keeping students and staff safe during the day, Conner will continue to work his evening shifts at the police department, providing protection for the entire community.

Although his workload has increased, Conner said he’s happy to be able to be the resource officer for the school district and truly enjoys it.

“When you love something so much, it’s not work,” he said.

“This has been such a joy for me to be able to provide an increased level of security to the Kingfisher school district and the community.”

It’s money well spent, providing added security for Kingfisher Public Schools, Glover said.

“I think it’s a good thing we’ve got going and I hope we can expand it over the years,” he added.