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The national School Resource Officer Appreciation Day may have been on Feb. 15, but the recognition Rock Creek SRO Barry Isbell received two days earlier at a School Board meeting went far beyond that.

The board has asked principals to recognize someone from their school during monthly meetings who have made a significant contribution to their operations, and in Rock Creek’s case, it happened to be Isbell — affectionately known to students as “Officer Barry.”

Rock Creek Principal Celina Benere said that although SRO Appreciation Day happened to be during the same week, Officer Barry’s presence and contribution to student safety made him the ideal candidate to be recognized in front of the School Board as Rock Creek’s choice for honors.

“My faculty/staff unanimously decided that Officer Barry deserved it,” she said, referring to why he was honored. “It just worked out that my presentation was the week of SRO Appreciation Day.”

Benere told the board that Isbell has had a tremendous on-campus presence because he has built solid relationships with students’ families and knows the vehicles used to pick up students, further ensuring their safety.

“Safety is our No. 1 priority, thanks to Officer Barry,” she said.

Benere said that Isbell was instrumental in having an on-campus, active-shooter drill in October 2022 and has played a leading role in a system-wide effort to have drills at the School System’s 11 campuses to assess weaknesses in their protection levels.

She added that Isbell’s efforts have improved security levels at Rock Creek.

“We’re getting better and better all the time,” Benere said.

She wasn’t the only one to explain Isbell’s positive contribution to daily life at Rock Creek. She played a video for the board that featured students extending their thanks to “Officer Barry” for the difference he’s made in their lives.

The statements the children made resembled “Kids Say the Darndest Things” segments from the television show “Art Linkletter’s House Party,” which aired from 1952 to 1969.

Children on the show were asked questions about societal issues, and their answers were often a comic portrayal of life depicted through children’s eyes. However, at times, the answers they gave were simple and direct, displaying a logic that many adults might not expect from young children.

The board was delighted at the children’s depiction of Isbell.

Second-grader Kinsley Boles-Majors explained her appreciation of “Officer Barry.”

“I like Officer Barry because he protects our school, and he does everything for us,” Kinsley said. “He protects all the cars from getting into wrecks.

“He just protects us, and I love him so much. He’s the best officer we could ever have.”

Fifth-grader Justice Stephens echoed Kinsley’s assessment.

“I like Officer Barry because he’s somebody that I can always talk to, and he always keeps us safe,” Justice said. “I like Officer Barry at this school because he takes care of it.

“When there’s something that needs to be done, he doesn’t just sit around. He goes down and takes care of it with the principals.”

First-grader Karmela Beaudry provided a short comment.

“Officer Barry is nice, sweet,” she said. “He protects our school.”

Third-grader Boston Bolin said he hopes Officer Barry remains on campus indefinitely.

“I want to appreciate you, and I’m thankful that you’re here at the school protecting us,” he said on the video to the SRO. “And I’m glad that you know everybody’s name.

“I hope you stay here for the rest of your life until you get old, mostly. I hope you have a good day here. Stay safe, stay good, God Bless.”

Fifth-grader Andrew Martin expressed his gratitude.

“Thank you for protecting us Officer Barry,” he said. “Thank you for being here. Thank you for being helpful, and thank you for calling us by name.

“I’m happy you are here at our school and hope you can be here for the rest of your life and still stay healthy.”

Fourth-grader Joram Triplett added to the dialogue.

“We love Officer Barry because he’s very nice,’ Joram said. “He protects this school, and he serves for us as a police officer, and he protects this school.”

Kindergartener Levi Smith had similar sentiments.

“Officer Barry keeps us safe, and he’s so sweet,” he said, later giving a thumbs up in appreciation.

Kindergartener Sebastian Abeare echoed his classmate’s assessment.

“The only reason I like Officer Barry is because he protects our school and keeps us safe,” he said.

Fifth-grader Davis Drye agreed.

“I like Officer Barry because he’s a good man and he keeps us safe every day and he guards us with his life,” Davis said. “And he always checks his watch to see if our moms are late when they drop us off.”

Fourth-grader Gracen Pickett concluded the students’ video dialogue.

“Officer Barry is very important to the school because he protects us from intruders who try to break in and hurt us,” she said. “He protects this school very much. He keeps traffic away from the school as much as possible. He helps us a lot.”

Isbell’s presence has involved more than just protecting the students from harmful outside threats.

He referred to taking a child to the student nurse and how he had provided reassurance that everything would be OK.

“When you do that, you’ve got a friend for life,” Isbell said.

Isbell said he greatly appreciates the students’ gratitude.

“The confidence bestowed to me by the staff and parents with their safety and the safety of their children is a great honor,” he said. “I feel blessed to be able to interact with the children on a daily basis.”