GREENFIELD — After the School Committee voted 5-2 against a proposal to study stationing a school resource officer in one of the district’s schools, the Public Safety Commission challenged the school board on Wednesday to send a written questionnaire to district parents, asking if they want an SRO.

Ed Jarvis, a member of the Public Safety Commission, called upon the School Committee at a commission meeting Wednesday, in which parents and community members spoke to express support for an SRO. His request was met with applause and support from other commissioners.

“I challenge you guys to draft a letter and mail it to all of the people that are the stakeholders, because right now, the tail is wagging the dog and the dog isn’t wagging the tail,” Jarvis said. “The taxpayers and the citizens that are sending kids to these schools are the stakeholders, and they deserve to have their voices heard, not just a handful of people speaking for them.”

School Committee member Stacey Sexton, who attended the commission meeting virtually, responded to the “challenge” in a phone interview Thursday.

Speaking for themselves, rather than the full committee, Sexton noted that they can “fully endorse” using public feedback to inform the committee’s decision, but considers the commission’s description of it as a challenge to be “disingenuous,” implying the School Committee was not already seeking feedback from parents.

“All parents are deeply concerned about student safety, and so are we as a committee,” Sexton said. “From the conversations I’ve had with parents, I’ve heard varying opinions on what should be done to keep our kids safe.”

Among those who commented publicly was Don DeNofrio, the grandfather of a Greenfield High School student who sustained head injuries after he was beaten in the cafeteria. Denofrio explained that the alleged assault, which he said emerged from a conflict over stolen soccer cleats, hospitalized his grandson and kept him out of school for weeks with a concussion.

“This is a fight that doesn’t need to be. We should be fighting for 1,400 kids in the school district. What are we all going to say when this all happens and somebody else gets hurt, because it’s coming, so who else is going to get hurt?” DeNofrio said. “We’re going to say, ‘Well, we sat on our hands and we were fighting among each other. We took our eye off the ball.’”

Cambrie Carme, the student’s mother, also spoke in favor of the SRO.

“I’m here because the school failed to protect my child. ... My son was hit in the back of the head from behind and fell. He hit his jaw on the table and chair ... with lacerations on the back of his head, and was bleeding from the back of his head,” Carme said. “I’m here to speak on [behalf of] my son and other students who need a voice and to try to put an end to this violence and bullying that is going on in Greenfield High School.”

Resident Kerry Semaski added that she pulled her children out of Greenfield’s schools through School Choice because of “safety concerns.” She noted that when students were beaten or hurt, there was little communication to parents or “follow-through” from administration.

At-Large City Councilor Wahab Minhas speculated that the School Committee’s hesitancy to station an officer in the district might stem from national discourse on policing — an issue that Minhas said was not relevant to the Greenfield Police Department.

Following the public comment period, commissioners questioned Turners Falls High School SRO Dan Miner and Franklin County Technical SRO Mike Sevene.

Both officers explained that their experiences as SROs have been positive, noting that they built strong relationships with their students and were able to act in a supportive, rather than punitive, role. Miner said that after seven years serving as an SRO, he has still not made a single arrest. In his 11-year tenure as an SRO, Sevene said he only made one arrest.

“I’ve had zero arrests in seven years — zero,” Miner said. “Have I had some mental health issues that the child might have gone to the hospital? Yes. Have I had, you know, less than a handful of summonses in those years? Yes. … We are a resource. I work daily with the adjustment counselors, I work daily with the principal, with the other counselors in their building. We are a resource, we’re not there to jam kids up.”

Anthony Cammalleri can be reached at acammalleri@recorder.com or 413-930-4429.