Police Responses, Bullying Incidents Drop At Bridgewater-Raritan Schools

BRIDGEWATER, NJ — The safety and security at Bridgewater-Raritan Regional Schools is continuing to improve under the district's security team.

Superintendent Robert Beers, joined by Mike Voorhees, Coordinator of District Security, and Ted Lewis, Assistant Coordinator of District Security, presented to the Board of Education on Tuesday an update on the district's security team.

The presentation detailed the district's security team's evolution, including strategic recruitment efforts, clearly defined responsibilities, and enhanced communication protocols.

The team members and its team— who are school employees and are made up of state police, local police detectives, county forces, and veterans — was formed in 2022.

Since then, the district has seen a decrease in serious disciplinary matters.

"Significant incidents are down," said Beers at the meeting.

Beers shared the number of law enforcement responses by year or how many times the school system had to contact the police.

In 2022, there were 650 responses; 450 responses in 2023; 320 responses in 2024; and 220 responses in 2025.

"And what does that mean? It's a more orderly place. We have people who are monitoring the situation. We’re acting on things. And many times … they act on things before they happen and that’s demonstrated through the statistic," said Beers.

Along with police responses, Beers said that Harrassment, Intimidation and Bullying cases have "dropped exponentially."

"And why is that? There are more people monitoring students. There’s more of a standard of what we expect from kids and from the adults. And overall its become a more orderly place," said Beers.

Improvements

Over the past four years, Voorhees said, the phone system, swipe card system, IT system have all been upgraded.

Previously, only two phones in the 900 building and 1,000 building of the high school had an intercom system.

"Now we use 911 on any house phone in any building. All the phones can also initiate and activate security," said Voorhees.

The previous swipe card system was inadequate. So Voorhees said the district went with another vendor, which is intertwined with the camera system.

Additionally, the security team went to the Westfield School District to learn about their IT system and mimicked their system.

"Part of the system's upgrade throughout all of our buildings is part of the referendum. The PA system. Clocks, it's really an all-in-one system. We use it for emergencies and day-to-day operations," said Beers.

Voorhees said the district also has a little under 1,000 cameras.

"When I came into the district, no one was really looking at the cameras. IT was doing IT stuff. I came in here and had a look at a lot of the cameras. Cameras were put up not with security in mind, more like we need here, we need one there. We filled in a lot of those holes in the last five years and we added a lot through referendum money," said Voorhees.

The camera system is also accessible to both the Bridgewater and Raritan Police Departments.

Moving Forward

The district is now looking at expanding their footprint as far as personnel.

"I appreciate the support of the Board of Education on that. I know that’s something that we will discuss more when it comes to budget time," said Beers.

The district will also continue to update its camera systems, swipe systems, etc.

"Finally we are working with the Township on a few ordinances for parking, etc.," said Beers.

He referenced an incident in October 2025 when two uninvited vehicles were found parked on school grounds at Hamilton School.

"No one quite knew why these folks were there. So as a school, if we have a clear ordinance where we ticket vehicles or at least address that in a more coherent way, it would go a long way for us as a school," said Beers.

Another parking ordinance is being proposed for the high school senior parking lot where people have been known to park there and leave their vehicles.

Overall, Board members praised the efforts of its security team.

"The difference I have seen in terms of incidents on campus and just what I hear from my kids is night and day," said Board Vice President Rebecca Hassouna, who has had two children in the high school over the past eight years. "I think this has been a tremendous, positive change."

"I just want to commend our campus monitors and our workforce because it's been a fantastic change to our district," said Board member Steven Singer. "And seeing the growth over the past couple of years. But more importantly, seeing how they interact, how there are campus monitors and our security force interact with our staff and our children is just a joy to watch."

The complete presentation is available: School Security Presentation.

Have a news tip? Email alexis.tarrazi@patch.com.