A loud crash filled up the house. A door is knocked down and broken in the middle of the night. This was just part of the job for Highland School Resource Officer Tyler Venema.
As a member of the Utah SWAT team, Venema broke through many barriers to accomplish challenging tasks he was assigned. Now, at Highland, he is breaking through barriers between students and officers.
Venema assigned to Highland during the 2023-24 school year. He is at Highland to keep the school safe, enforce any laws that might be broken, but he also is an informal mentor for the students. He specifically chose Highland for his job because of what he called its “excellent administration.”
Venema is at Highland to make a difference. He wants to make Highland a better place than when he found it. He is working hard so that the next officer to come will have the right resources, the right training, and is in a good place.
One of his first priorities is to make the students trust him. He creates strong social connections with many of the students at Highland, breaking down the barrier between officers and student relationships. The students know him and love him. Weston Tyson, a student at Highland has interacted with Venema a few times.
“He comes into our gym class and plays basketball with us; he is pretty active with the kids,” Tyson said.
Getting to know the students at Highland helps Venema to do his job. If he gets to know students, he believes he will gain an insight into what is happening in their lives. He thinks this is the best way to improve safety at Highland and to improve the lives of the students.
“Well, in order for me to make a difference in students’ lives, they have to trust me and in order for them to trust me, they have to like me,” Venema said. “That is my goal. My goal is to make this a safe space. My goal is to help students make good decisions.”
Venema can be seen walking around the halls during lunchtime or throughout the day. He often interacts with students. Whether he is giving them high fives or having conversations with them, he is putting in the effort to get to know many of the students. Because he has four children of his own, communicating with high schoolers comes naturally to him.
Not only is he hoping to keep students safe, but he is also a mentor and friend. Students can trust him and share aspects of their lives. He cares about what is happening and he can help them with advice, or if it is serious and they need protection.
Having a conversation with Venema can often be difficult. Not because he is difficult to communicate with, but because everyone wants to talk to him. During one specific conversation with him in his office, multiple students interrupted just because they wanted to say hello and talk for a few minutes.
It is clear that students love talking to Venema. Whenever students interact with him, they walk away with a smile. His fun presence and ability to listen makes students excited to see him throughout their day. He is very interesting as well, with a side career as a security officer for the Utah Jazz, and 19 years of police training he always has a good story to tell.
With Venema in the school, Highland students will have a friend that can keep them safe. They have someone who they can trust and who can help them in any case that they might need. If they are in any danger, Venema can protect and guide them.
“Also, if they are dealing with something, I would like to protect them from any dangers that they are facing in their life and give them advice on how to fix it,” Venema said. “Or I can step in and help them if they need me.”
Above all, Venema is here to keep everyone safe. Safety is the most important thing to him, and in order to maintain safety, he needs to know what is going on in students’ lives.
“This is the safest they (Highland students) will ever be, when I am here,” Venema said.
