The Canton Board of Education recently had the chance to meet the district’s new director of school security.
Sean Cole of Farmington started for Canton schools in late November. The Farmington resident has owned a private detective agency since 1995.
Assistant Superintendent Dr. Jordan Grossman said Cole was picked from a pool of 26 applicants that included police officers, former chiefs, federal agents and others.
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“We were very pleased with the candidate pool we had,” Grossman said.
The process involved narrowing the candidates down to four and then two. Along the way, input was gathered from police chief Christopher Arciero, Capt. Lawrence Terra, fire marshal and director of Emergency Management Adam Libros and others, Grossman said.
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The role of director of security evolved from another position that was vacated after last year.
The creation of the job was part of a yearlong discussion and ongoing changes implemented in the wake of the horrifying tragedy at Sandy Hook nearly a year ago, board chair Leslee Hill said.
“This is one of the highlights of that plan,” Hill said. “I don’t think we could have found a better candidate.”
He said he never expected he'd be selected but added that his background has included working with youth coaching field hockey, lacrosse and ice hockey.
“I think it’s paramount in my position to embrace the community,” Cole said. “Everybody’s been very welcoming I look forward to bring what know I can to this position and making your kids safer.”
The full-time position involves working school hours and pays $20,000.
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