- July 29, 2026
A year ago, the Flagler County School Board voted to add a school resource deputy to serve as a floater on a one-year trial basis. On Tuesday, July 28, the board voted on to renew the model for another year.
For the second year in a row, Janie Ruddy was the only board member to vote against having a floater, who will serve as the district’s 14th full-time SRD. The floater fills in for other SRDs who take sick leave or go on vacation. The floater also works district events and extracurricular activities.
The board approved the interlocal agreement with the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office for SRDs to serve the district’s nine schools. The county pays half the cost for all but three SRDs, Palm Coast pays the cost of one and Flagler Schools will pay the entire cost of two deputies, including the floater. The district also pays the cost for nine crossing guards.
The district’s total cost in the SRD agreement is $1,788,777. Without a floater the cost to the district would have been $1,621,107. The floater does save the district in overtime costs, of which it is fully responsible. But with each deputy’s salary and benefits costing $167,670, having a floater is still more costly to the district.
It’s a cost that’s worth having another SRD who is familiar with the campuses, school operations and the students who get to know their SRDs, board members Lauren Ramirez and Will Furry said.
“It’s a guessing game,” Ramirez said about predicting how much overtime would be required in a given year. “We don’t know how many will get the flu or go to court.”
Ramirez said the floater model wasn’t designed to save money. Its purpose was to be more efficient.
“Either way, we will have a deputy at every school,” she said. “But I want to have that floater. I want the kids to say, ‘that’s my cop.’”
Ruddy said when an SRD is out, the district should do what it’s done for the last 10 years, which is get a well-trained officer from the FCSO to fill in. With budget cuts a reality, “we’re compounding fiscal irresponsibility,” she said.
“I don’t see a reason to overspend at this time,” Ruddy added.
Board Chair Christy Chong voted with Furry and Ramirez to approve the floater SRD for another year.
“Every penny matters,” Ramirez said. “But I do like this model.”
