Key West High School once had a beloved math teacher named Michael Caldwell who the student population and colleagues loved on campus. After a brief hiatus from being on campus as a teacher, the students who addressed their math guru as “Mr. Caldwell” altered their convos and accolades by adapting to his newer role as “Officer Caldwell.”
When police command staff astutely recognize who among their officers will best suit roles to fill, the executives leading the Key West Police Department —the southernmost tip of Florida and the United States— tapped Officer Caldwell to serve as a school resource officer (SRO) at the same campus he taught mathematics: Key West High School.
The kids and faculty who thought they had lost an integral educator and cohort were smiling again when they learned he was assigned as their school resource officer, re-paving the way for safety and maybe some insights with number problems.
Seems he has some keen knowledge of athletics, and attendant support, for the students who occupy roles on school sports teams, overseeing their physical prowess and general growth in youthful endeavors.
(Photo courtesy of the Key West Police Department.)
All in the Family
It is not uncommon that people engaged in the police profession find love at the station and become united as a law enforcement family…
SRO Caldwell’s wife, Desirae Caldwell, is a Key West Police Department telecommunicator (dispatcher) with artistic talents.
(Photo courtesy of Key West Police Department Recruiting.)
“Meet the artist, Key West Police Department Telecommunicator Desirae Caldwell. She did the fabulous artwork for our Key West High School Resource Officers vehicles. They belong to Officers Mike Caldwell (Desi’s husband) and Mike Malgrat who are assigned to KWHS.”
This is another example of the deep well of resourcefulness consistently exemplified by law enforcement personnel, whether sworn or civilian. Some plans may not be overnight (successful, safe drug den investigations and take-down operations require careful planning and time) but, rest assured, their heads come together from the get-go, forging blueprints to roll out community engagement or attack major dilemmas in the jurisdiction.
Sometimes an agency rebrands and personnel devise fabulous ideas to project public safety imagery emphasizing the jurisdiction’s notoriety. Key West, Florida, is historically renowned as the Conch Republic.
As school mascots and sports teams go, Key West High School is “Home of the Conchs.”
(Photo courtesy of Key West Police Department Recruiting.)
Now, the math teacher turned cop rides to his duty station in a police vehicle whose design was creatively crafted by his spouse, a daily voice heard across Key West PD frequencies, directing beat cops where to respond.
Students as Police Explorers
SRO Caldwell’s transformation has some unique benefits that cater to police agency programs specifically for students…
SRO Caldwell and his legacy as an educator at Key West High School serves in several ways, including as a quasi-recruiter for Key West PD’s police explorer program.
When I volunteered at schools in my police jurisdiction, I learned the aspirations of students. Those who asked questions about law enforcement and shared their childhood dreams of becoming a LEO someday were availed the bona fide benefit of joining our agency’s Police Explorer Program (PEP) and getting a realistic feel for what it entails.
I suspect SRO Caldwell is in the mix of recruiting prospects for the Key West police explorers. Lord knows his tenure as a teacher forged friendships and rapport with students, some of whom may have harbored an eye for wearing a badge as a police officer, especially after realizing he switched careers and became one in the same territory.
On school grounds/fields, SRO Caldwell coordinates physical agility drills mimicking police agency fitness requirements for consideration as law enforcement recruits.
(Photo courtesy of Key West Police Department Recruiting.)
This is what I found to support my theory of SRO Caldwell and his bonds with students:
The Key West police force “provides a program at Key West High School, called ‘Police Explorers.’ This allows students to become familiar with the world of law enforcement while still attending high school. For part of the familiarization process, KWHS School Resource Officers, Mike Malgrat and Mike Caldwell, with the help of training Ofc. Mike Chaustit, introduced the newest Explorers to the physical agility course. This is an initial entry requirement for all Officers.”
As a math teacher, Mr. Caldwell never had to consider the physicality required of law enforcement officers…until he changed careers. The police academy is less about numbers or integers and more about stature and rigors.
One thing is clear about a beloved math teacher who transformed his life by switching roles to become a selfless cop: Mentoring and safeguarding young lives is a common denominator in his personal and professional constitution.
