Rhythm and Blues
PICTURED ABOVE
DOCJT Instructor Bill Eckler sings to his own tune but keeps the safety of Kentucky kids as top priority. (Photo by Jim Robertson)
A sunny disposition, a penchant for four-part harmony and a heart that keeps beating for Kentucky’s schoolchildren are three parts that comprise Department of Criminal Justice Training Instructor Bill Eckler.
It’s not every day one can boast more than three decades of law enforcement service, a number one music single in a European country and the responsibility of leading training for all Kentucky school resource officers (SROs)—but Eckler can.
A Home Start
Born and raised in Estill County, Eckler’s father worked at Ford Motor Company and his mother was a teacher. Eckler joined the Engineers as a member of the Estill County High School football team, following in his father’s footsteps.
Eckler’s first taste of life as a first responder came at age 16 when he joined the rescue squad. By 19, he worked 32 hours a week as a firefighter and eight hours as a dispatcher. Eckler was introduced to law enforcement through his telecommunications job, and when working accident scenes with the fire department, he witnessed police in action.
Seeing every aspect of public safety at such a young age was eye-opening, Eckler said, recalling families in despair and working accidents that involved former classmates and football team members.
“Seeing all that devastation, I knew I wanted to be of help during tragic times,” he said.
At the advice of a friend and Kentucky State Police detective, Eckler applied to transfer into the Irvine Police Department and, at that time, became the youngest officer the agency had ever employed—after graduating from DOCJT’s Basic Training Academy Class 157.
Tragedy invaded the small city of Irvine in 1986 when Chief Robert Walker was shot and killed. Eckler noted the incident was emotional and made him realize the gravity of policing more than ever.
“You learn to live with it, but you never forget it,” he said. “When I teach basic training at DOCJT, I thank recruits for turning their heads toward the law enforcement memorial and acknowledging the monument when they walk by. This requirement might become an old hat to them or just something they have to do, but to me, they are paying respect to a dear friend.”
As he and the city mourned, Eckler said the murderer’s trial venue was moved to Madison County. It was the first time he was introduced to the area, and like many who develop a fondness for the mountainous arts and crafts community, Eckler decided he would like to live and serve in Berea if given the opportunity.
He applied to the city police department, and much to his surprise, the chief knew who he was due to the aforementioned trial being broadcast on local television.
In 1987, Eckler joined the Berea Police Department (BPD), serving a combined 20 years before and after retirement.
On the Job Education
One day during his tenure at BPD, Chief Ray Brandenburg asked Eckler to consider becoming the agency’s Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) officer. After a night of consideration, Eckler turned the offer down, stating he didn’t feel like he was the right fit.
Brandenburg wasn’t having it. He asked the young officer what color his badge was—the reply: silver. The chief then asked what color his badge was, Eckler said gold. Brandenburg promptly told Eckler that gold outweighs silver, just as he outweighed the officer’s decision.
Eckler became Berea’s D.A.R.E. officer, a title he held for years, which ushered him into a passion for working with young people. He received Kentucky’s D.A.R.E. Officer of the Year award in 1998.
“I always say, that was the best thing that could have happened to me,” said Eckler. “It gave me a new outlook on life and allowed me to work with hundreds and hundreds of kids. In addition to D.A.R.E., I had the opportunity to organize Berea’s Police Explorer program. To this day, people will come up and remind me that I was their D.A.R.E. instructor or that they were in my Police Explorer’s post—our State School Security Marshal Ben Wilcox is one of them. He was in both.”
There and Back Again
In the late 1990s, Eckler came to work at DOCJT until his retirement 10 years later. However, the long-serving officer would not rest long. A call from then-Berea Chief (and now DOCJT Leadership Instructor) David Gregory reeled him back to the city’s department part time in 2010. Eckler found himself once again working with children, this time for eight years as Madison Southern High School and Foley Middle School’s SRO.
But life is funny, and Eckler found himself returning to DOCJT. After teaching DUI enforcement, he was allowed to begin teaching the SRO curriculum and share his knowledge of creating safe, educational environments to officers and agencies across the commonwealth.
(Photo by Jim Robertson)
Safe and Sound
Following the 2018 Marshall County High School shooting, law makers, law enforcement professionals and educators began to see the need for well-trained SROs, additional facility safety measures and increased mental health professionals. A mental health component was something Eckler said he had already been advocating for after having worked closely with Madison Southern’s school psychologist and seeing the benefits.
Once signed into law in March 2019, the School Safety and Resiliency Act required that SROs be in all schools and designated enhanced training for everyone within the profession.
With years of experience in schools behind him and a passion for enhancing Kentucky schoolchildren’s educational lives and safety, Eckler was tasked with writing the first of three mandated SRO training courses for DOCJT. He collaborated with other instructors to create the second and third. Once an SRO has completed the triad, they have taken 120 hours of training specific to their job duties.
The courses allow each SRO to operate cohesively. Eckler noted this is particularly useful should multiple agencies work together to respond to a school incident regardless of their badge shape or the color of their uniform.
A Role of Many
While many people immediately think of school safety and security as an SRO’s main role, Eckler said the job entails so much more.
Not every officer is cut out to be an SRO, just as not every person is meant to be a police officer, Eckler noted. Officers who take on the role become people kids can look up to and are trained to be approachable and stable mentors. Each day they monitor those within the school and liaison between the students, parents, school administrators and local law enforcement agencies.
“When an SRO enters a school, it’s kind of like coming into their own little city,” explained Eckler. “They are assigned to that city, which has a lot of people with their own set of problems.”
Providing further detail, Eckler said that issues from staff, students and parents’ personal lives can make their way onto the campus and must be mitigated.
Additionally, the former SRO said that having rapport with students is important, citing how he used to walk and talk with young people having issues. This strategy let him build relations, gain information and remove them from the situation.
Eckler reminds those he trains of the second word in their title: resource.
“If I couldn’t help, I would refer to someone who could,” said Eckler of his SRO years. “If I connected them to someone, I didn’t just say, ‘Here call this number.’ I would walk them to that person because I didn’t want them to think I was giving up or saying, “That’s not my job.” I wanted to maintain a connection.”
(Photo by Jim Robertson)
That Sweet, Sweet Sound
What some people might not know about Eckler is that, in addition to being a leading expert on SROs, he also can croon a tune—some might have heard his voice belting the national anthem at DOCJT graduations.
It’s not surprising that Eckler can sing as music runs deep into his family history—all the way back to the 1930s and 40s when his uncle, Pop Eckler, was traveling the country playing at various radio stations along with the likes of fiddle player and songwriter Boudreaux Bryant, who wrote the well-known song, “Rocky Top” with his wife Felice.
Additionally, Eckler’s cousin, Greg Eckler, played drums and sang with Ricky Nelson and the Stone Canyon Band, The Tokens, Rubicon, Psalms 150 and several others.
In the 1980s Eckler joined his father’s southern gospel group, the Calvary Heirs Quartet, of which he is now at the helm and joined by his wife Bonnie. The group continues to tour and record. Additionally, they celebrated a number one song in Europe after a chance meeting with a Swiss radio show host.
A Lasting Impression
As time goes by, Eckler says he wants to be more focused and proactive, something he certainly accomplishes and passes down to his students in DOCJT’s SRO training program.
“I tell them, the sky’s the limit on the impact you can make in the life of a child,” he said. “I stress to my classes, even though you will see hundreds of kids each year and will walk those school halls each day, don’t get (complacent). Don’t let your hundredth day be any different or less intentional than your first.”
