Officer Ana Alicia Torres likes to talk to the students at Tafolla Middle School about her own time growing up on the city’s west side.
“I am a product of SAISD, and I enjoyed my time here,” Torres, a graduate of Fox Tech, said. “I grew up in the west side as well, so I love to tell the kids ‘Hey, I grew up down the street.’”
Torres went to peace officer school after working five years in the Justice of the Peace court and has been serving in the Lanier High School feeder pattern for the last eight years, starting at Tafolla, going to Lanier for three years, and returning now to Tafolla.
Daily, she makes her rounds on campus with administration, checking entry points and making sure everything is secure. She also likes to make herself visible in the hallways and at lunches so that she can talk to students and take a read on the mood on campus each day. A lot of her job is talking to students on a daily basis, hearing them out and letting them know they matter.
“We’re more than just officers,” Torres said. “During these eight hours, we’re parents, we’re counselors, we’re friends, we’re an ear for these kids when they just need to vent or talk to somebody.”
Torres is a family liaison officer, emergency operations trainer, and mental health officer. Part of her job is to respond to crisis calls when students may be in danger of hurting themselves or others. She says awareness of mental health is especially important in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Sometimes it’s even talking to parents and letting them know that there still is a big stigma around mental health, and that it’s okay — it’s no different than diabetes or high cholesterol,” she said. “If a student needs that attention or help, they should be able to get it. There shouldn’t be that stigma.”
Torres gives a lot of her time to programs that support the community. She’s participated in the district’s annual toy drive and visit with Santa, Trunk or Treat, fundraising for St. Jude’s, and volunteer work for the San Antonio Housing Authority.
“Over the years Officer Torres has participated in many community programs, not only within the district, but opportunities that serve the Lanier High School area also,” Sergeant Christina Houston said. “She also works closely with district personnel when individual students are in need to ensure they have all necessary resources to be successful at school.”
Day to day on the Tafolla campus, she’s working with social workers and counselors to help students. She says what keeps her going is those students, that they respond and take notice of what she's doing.
“They know when I’m here and they know when I’m not here, and when I’m not here, they will be asking,” Torres said. “I was in Washington, D.C., in October for the National Police Memorial and I was getting texts all day from administration and teachers saying, ‘the kids are asking where you’re at.’”
In return, she wants to be that somebody who notices them, who asks how their days are, removes obstacles for them and cheers them on.
“I like to show them that there is that opportunity and option,” she said. “Whatever you want to do you can do it, you don’t have to stay stuck wherever you are at.”